Targets to Reach for


Welcome to The Addition, where I cover the crossover between culture, media and sport.

It's another international break (in football). The perfect opportunity for attention to turn to the domestic women's game. The appetite for women’s football in the UK seems to be growing, thanks in no small part to the decision to move coverage of games not shown on linear TV to YouTube. Per The Guardian, numbers are up threefold from last season when fans had to use the extremely clunky FA Player to watch the games. After the first three matchdays, total live views had cleared 1.5 million.

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Reach Hacks "Not Allowed to do Journalism"

A journalist on one of Reach’s national publications has spoken of the strain the growing demands of editors at Reach is putting on staff. These outlets tend to have small staffs but are being asked to publish evermore stories. Quantity, not quality, increasingly seems to be the name of the game.

Reach owns national brands like The Mirror and Daily Star and local brands like The Manchester Evening News and the Live set of websites. Last week, HoldTheFrontPage got hold of an email written by someone they refer to as “a senior Reach editor”. This person called on his troops to produce “at least eight stories a shift” to help improve traffic.

Press Gazette confirmed that that email came from Graeme Brown, who runs Birmingham Live. I’ve been told his edict was specifically about the brand he runs. A further email from Paul Rowland, Editorial Director (Live Network) following newsroom feedback read...

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The Addition

Charlotte Henry is a journalist and broadcaster who creates and runs The Addition newsletter and podcast; an award-winning publication looking at the crossover between media and technology.

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Welcome to The Addition, where I cover the crossover between culture, media and sport. Ben Mullin of The New York Times joins the show once again to discuss coverage of the US presidential election and Donald Trump, and what it means for the media going forward. He feels the media did a good job of holding all the candidates to account. I'm not so sure. We also discuss the growing power of podcasts when people are preparing to go to the polls. Coverage of Trump and the 2024–The Addition –...

Welcome to The Addition, where I cover the crossover between culture, media and sport. Last week, I reflected on the news that Gary Lineker is leaving Match of the Day at the end of the season and will leave the BBC after the 2026 World Cup. Many people noted, quite reasonably, that this means he can focus solely on his very successful Goalhanger Podcasts company. One somewhat overlooked element is that Lineker’s The Rest is Football show is going to be hosted by the BBC. It will be...

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Welcome to The Addition, where I cover the crossover between culture, media and sport. Hate to say I told you so. Ok, I don't. It has been revealed that Gary Lineker is leaving Match of the Day at the end of this season. He will leave the BBC completely at the end of the 2026 World Cup. I've said for a while that I thought this would be his last season presenting the flagship football highlights show, and that is how it has turned out. The truth is, this just works for everyone. As The Sun...