THE publisher of the Hereford Times has joined a call for national advertisers to place their trust in local news brands amid concerns over fake news.

Newsquest, the Hereford Times' parent company, is one of 24 local news publishers including Johnston Press, Archant and DC Thompson, issuing a call to ad agencies and national brands to use local news media.

That is instead, they say, of relying on the 'blind programmatic ad buying trap' that is leading to household brands being placed alongside extremist, unsafe and fake news content.

In an open letter published across the UK’s regional press, the CEOs of the UK’s longest established regional publishers highlight how local news brands, many of which now reach at least 70 per cent of the people in their respective towns and cities through their online platforms, provide a trusted, safe and highly responsive ad environment.

Key points highlighted include:

• Local news brands publish content by trained journalists and are regulated by the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO), the independent regulator holding publishers to account

• Advertisers can have the peace of mind that comes with a safe advertising placement as well as reaching one of the largest digital audiences in the UK

• Local news brands traditionally score well for trust

• Advertising helps to fund this much needed high quality local journalism

Henry Faure Walker, CEO of Newsquest, said: “The crisis of confidence in the national digital advertising market continues, with advertisers increasingly exposed and worried about the dangers of blind programmatic ad buying which is placing household brands next to extremist content and fake news. Google and Facebook are keen to apologise but they don’t have credible answers.

“Our content is produced by highly skilled local journalists, it is regulated, it relies on human judgement and discretion as opposed to blind algorithms, and it reaches and engages millions of people in communities throughout the UK. As a result, our advertising environment is trusted, safe and highly responsive.

“What’s more, advertising in local news brands continues to fund much needed high quality journalism across the UK. We hope that ad agencies and national advertisers will better recognise the value we provide and will agree that local news brands are worth standing up for”.