Matt Kelly has stepped down as editor of The New European, the “pop-up newspaper” he launched shortly after the Brexit referendum in 2016 “for the 48 per cent” of Remain voters.
Jasper Copping will take over editorship of the weekly title, having been its news editor since launch. He has previously worked at the Daily and Sunday Telegraph and the Eastern Daily Press.
Kelly (pictured) will continue to be involved with TNE as its publisher while continuing his role as chief content officer at Archant, which owns and publishes the paper alongside a number of regional titles.
He will also launch Project Neon, a three-year partnership with Google which is backed by millions of pounds in funding from the tech giant, searching for a way to make news pay online.
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Kelly said: “After more than three years editing a newspaper that was meant to last for four weeks, I’m more than ready to pass on the baton.
“It’s been a joyful experience, and I am sure without The New European, Brexit would have sent me mad by now.
“Satisfyingly, that is a sentiment I often hear from many of our readers, who I’d like to thank especially for their loyalty and support.”
Kelly spoke to Press Gazette as TNE printed its 100th issue.
Copping (pictured below) said he was “honoured” Kelly was “entrusting me with his remarkable creation”.
The New European’s Jasper Copping. Picture: Steve Adams/Archant
He added: “I am looking forward to continuing the title’s superb campaigning and its coverage, not just of Brexit but of news and culture from across Europe and beyond.
“Regardless of what happens between now and October 31, I don’t expect politics to become any less tumultuous any time soon, or journalism any less exciting.”
Press Gazette reported last week that Archant’s chief executive Jeff Henry was stepping down after five years.
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