We’ve started: what now?

Picture special from launch of The Source - and why we need support to keep going

You could have been sat in the audience as we revealed the launch of The Source on Tuesday. Or you could have read the news in our special edition I’ve Got News For You which was published that afternoon.

A new online newspaper for the North East.

There we were in a fantastic venue packed with some top, top people. A welcome from Charlie Charlton, Steph McGovern in great form as she announces she is investing in the business, the ‘Ooos’ as the classy branding designed by Cravens is revealed on the big screen.

And it would be easy to sit back and think: “This is great. This is what we need. They’ve got this sorted.”

I would respond with a ‘yes’, ‘yes’ and ‘no we don’t’.

I’ve got news for you

Eyes & Ears was successful in obtaining equity funding from the North East Accelerate Fund managed by Mercia. That has given us a base from which to launch The Source - with Eyes & Ears becoming a weekly column in the new venture.

Independent, politically-neutral but North East biased, The Source will be a modern platform for regionally unique public benefit journalism and a launchpad for the next generation of great storytellers.

It will have more issue-led journalism, a focus on regional affairs, serve up informed opinion and engaging columnists, and produce quality stories on the people and places that make the North East such a great place to live.

It’s important I manage expectations here. I stressed at the launch event that one of the biggest lessons learned is to walk before we try running. To do all of that we need more funding, more subscribers - and the support of sponsors and advertisers.

The screen that greeted guests on arrival at The Catalyst on Tuesday; Gateshead College students at the registration desk; breakfast drinks for Newcastle United Foundation's Steve Beharall; John Marshall and Jeff Brown; Bernicia Chair John Holmes; and Gary Fawcett of Raymond James; Jack Arthurs, Keith Merrin, Huw Lewis and Jeff Brown make their way into the theatre; Sir Ian Wrigglesworth and Graeme Thompson share a laugh before the event begins.

How you can help

If you are a subscriber then encourage other people to do the same. Use your social media to tell people about The Source. If you are a free subscriber then the most sustainable way to support us is to become a paid subscriber - it costs £6.99 a month and you can do that here:

HMRC runs a Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme which gives tax reliefs to individuals to incentivise them to support early‑stage companies like ours. That’s what Steph is doing - and we would welcome more people to join her and Lady Jane Gibson in doing so.

Newcastle University's Jane Robinson, Louise Hunter from Northumbrian Water, Caroline Docking from Newcastle NHS Trust, and the city council's Jen Hartley in conversation; a full house for the event; Charlie Charlton welcomes guests and introduces Steph McGovern, Brian Aitken and Simon Rushworth; a testimonial on screen from a happy Eyes & Ears reader; Alfie Joey's cartoon on paywalls, highlighing that people would think nothing about paying for news - if it was in print!

Our immediate aim is to raise £35,000 to enable The Source to employ a reporter specialising in public benefit journalism. We have launched a Crowdfunding campaign for that specific purpose.

The first person to join the Crowdfunder was former Guardian regional affairs editor Peter Hetherington. He said: “This is a venture desperately needed in the North East: a regular source of independent journalism, good writing and information to underpin the ambitions (hopefully) of a mayoral strategic authority, hold it (and the government) to account where necessary, and provide a platform for those with ideas to drive forward the economy. All this while telling good stories.”

To donate:
www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/thesource

Steph gets the Q&A underway by throwing the cube microphone into the audience; well caught by Richard O'Neill; Gateshead College students conduct post-event interviews with Steph and Ian McElroy of Tier One Capital, one of the event sponsors; the screen that visitors saw on the way out.

Philanthropy and public benefit journalism

One of the slides shown at the launch event at The Catalyst was a quote from Claire Malcolm, chief executive of New Writing North: “Democracy is under threat from social media and disinformation. Ensuring that communities of interest have trusted media is becoming a priority for many people both politically and from a philanthropic direction.”

The Charity Commission has said that certain kinds of journalism can count as charitable activity - investigative work that exposes wrongdoing or defends people’s rights, articles that help people understand and engage with how they’re governed, coverage of the arts, heritage, culture and science.

That makes it possible for charitable trusts and foundations to fund our work and means that businesses who want to support The Source can do so through any CSR budget as well as their marketing or advertising budget.

Selfie time after the students enjoyed some invaluable advice during a Q&A with Steph and Charlie

Last word on the launch

We worked with Gateshead College on the launch event. Their students were amazing. Manning the registration desk, stewarding, filming, photography, AV work, they were brilliant and a credit to the college. All the images in the picture galleries today were taken by Charlie Eaton. The students also benefitted from some quality time with Steph and Charlie Charlton who had welcomed everyone to the Helix and kicked off a Q&A and comments section at the end.

Tomorrow

A new edition of The Source will be published featuring an article by Professor Bob Hudson: Dying to know: Unraveling end-of-life care.