Reporters for regional news website Cornwall Live were told they were not allowed to film the Prime Minister’s visit to their patch today because they were invited as “print media” only.
Two reporters and a photographer for the Trinity Mirror website, which includes content from its weekly newspapers across the South West, were sent down to cover Theresa May’s visit to an industrial estate in Helston – as part of the Tory leader’s campaign trail.
Cornwall digital editor Jacqui Merrington told Press Gazette: “When we arrived there we were told we were not allowed to film anything because we were invited as print media, which seems a bit 20th century really.”
She said that while their photographer was allowed to follow Theresa May on her visit and take still images, the two reporters were “shut in a room” and told they could only ask two questions of May in an interview at the end of her visit, which they also were not allowed to film.
Merrington said the website, which she claimed has about 100,000 daily page impressions, was live blogging the tour and had hoped to do some video for Facebook Live as well.
“It felt very tightly controlled,” said Merrington.
“I think if [May] is going to come out on visits on the campaign trail the purpose of it should be for her to, if not meet members of the public, then at least show the public that she is there and we would be able to see what she’s talking about, what issues are being raised with her. We weren’t able to do that because we couldn’t see her talking to anyone else.
“Many of us here have had experiences with former leaders and while there have of course been restrictions, it didn’t feel as tightly controlled as this.”
She added: “To think that in this day and age – we were and still are a local newspaper – but we are a lot more than that. We are digital media and that is the case for most local media nowadays and to be restricted on that basis seems very archaic.
“We are quite a sizeable website and a large proportion of our audience comes through digital as well as the weekly papers.”
May is understood to have done televised interviews with the BBC and ITV during her visit.
Merrington said she had “put a call into Number 10” ahead of the visit to “try and argue our case to be able to film” and said she would follow up on the matter.
“If nothing else it would be nice to see in the future, local media treated as local media and not just local newspapers,” she said.
