Reach, the UK’s largest commercial news publisher, is expanding its Scotland-based editorial operations with the creation of 28 new roles.
The group will create a new website for the Scottish Express – headed up by editor Ben Borland – a new Aberdeen Live site, and relaunch Football Scotland.
New roles created for the Scottish Express include a head of live news, three politics writers, a news editor, six reporters and an audience editor for a total of 12 jobs.
A further ten jobs are being created at Aberdeen Live, including an editor, a news editor, reporters, trainee reporters and an engagement producer.
Six new roles have been created at Football Scotland to form a team of eight.
Reach Scotland editor-in-chief David Dick (pictured) said: “We have launched brilliant websites into Glasgow and Edinburgh and both have now established themselves as the dominant online news brand in their specific market, while co-existing with the traditional print brands in either city.
“Aberdeen was the obvious place to go next. I grew up in Aberdeenshire and it’s a unique area of Scotland, very different from the central belt.
“You can’t provide the north east [of Scotland] with the type of news service it deserves from a newsroom in Glasgow, so we’re building a new team up there that knows the area and the people.
“Our starting point with our live sites has been to go in with an extremely positive attitude about the city we are covering.”
Dick said he was “thrilled to bring back a unique voice in Scottish football coverage” with the return of Football Scotland.
Reach previously moved Football Scotland from its own independent site to the Daily Record in September 2019, just nine months after launching.
[Read more: Reach to move Football Scotland website under Daily Record with one job loss]
It comes after Reach revealed plans at the start of July to hire 76 new sports journalists this summer. It has said it aims to offer more coverage of sports outside of football.
[Read more: Reach to recruit 76 sports journalists with pledge for more non-football coverage and appeal for diverse voices]
Dick said of Football Scotland: “Football is such a major strength of what we do in print and online, not just at the Daily Record, but across the entire Reach network.
“There is such a huge demand for great sports content that there has always been room for us to develop a new voice covering sport in a different way to the Record.
“The Record is a natural home for most fans of Scottish football, so it seemed like a natural place to put Football Scotland content, but the reality is it really demands its own home and we’re confident we have a model that will ensure the website is a big success.”
Reach is also recruiting for additional roles for the Daily Record, Edinburgh Live and Glasgow Live.
Dick said Reach Scotland’s titles had a “strong sense of what our readers want and how to deliver it”.
“Our Live sites have never been shy about using the local vernacular to communicate and engage with their audience,” he said. “You can’t fake being from the north east of Scotland, if you try then locals will see through you pretty quickly.
“So we’ll be building a team of people who know the area well and have an authentic voice.”
Picture: Reach
Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog
