1161: What the Papers Say - Final edition on Radio 4

I’ve often wondered how long it would be until the media at large stopped looking to ‘the papers’ to lead content. Whilst there have been some huge stories unearthed by the best press journos in recent years, stories are often as likely to spring from a James O’Brien challenge or frosty Nick Ferrari exchange on LBC; a healthy duel on the Today programme or from a single Tweet. It’s perhaps, therefore, no surprise to hear that ‘What the Paper Say’ has ended its run on Radio 4. This scripted programme, with press clips read by actors, had begun on TV in 1956. Having channel-hopped a few times, it disappeared in 2008, before being revived on radio in 2010. Since the show began, the Mail’s circulation has fallen from 2m to a respectable 1.59m; the Times has grown from 220 to 404k; the Telegraph down from 1,1m to 472k; and the Mirror has declined from 4.6m to 809k. Circulations of the nationals, at least, have, it seems, held up better than press display advertising.