When The Glamorgan Gem closed its doors for good during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, the loss and gap was felt not only by the readers and advertisers, but also by the staff who have served the community for years.
As a result, some of the team, who were made redundant, decided to reform and bring out an independent, initially fortnightly, truly local new free newspaper for you.
The newspaper is based on the same winning combination of trusted, unashamedly local journalism and the advertising sales team really know their patch and the needs of the local businesses.
The Glamorgan Star team has a combined experience of more than 60 years behind them based in the Vale of Glamorgan and are looking forward to serving the community once more.
If it matters to you, it matters to us.
We will be campaigning on your behalf, reporting on local issues, celebrating your good news and establishing ourselves as the paper at the heart of the community.
We don’t need clicks or page views. We just need you to feel informed and entertained and a valued member of the local community with the opportunity to engage in debate while being respectful to all who make their voice heard.
We believe there is a market and need for a newspaper that will concentrate on local issues and local people.
Why? Well, in recent years there has been a transformation in how people get their news. Thanks to the internet and social media, the are so many new outlets.
In theory, there are so many ways to get news, but somehow it doesn’t get any easier to find a way through the maze.
Organisations, businesses, groups and even ‘citizen journalists’ spin stories to suit their own agenda. What’s the truth? It’s getting to the point where no one really cares anymore.
Here at the Glamorgan Star, we will be unbiased and will aim to give you the facts that will help you form your own opinions.
What’s more, our editorial staff have been round the block a bit, and know the tricks of the PR trade. We’ll be looking beyond the opening paragraph to try and find the real story.
Of course, this can take time. A ‘spun’ story can be posted and shared multiple times while that story is being checked by a reporter. As a fortnightly paper, we are well aware that readers may come across stories they have seen elsewhere on social media. It does take time to check things.
We will, of course, be keeping you up to date on a day by day basis via our own website and social media.
In Italy, people who cared about food started the ‘Slow Food’ movement. It was all about good local ingredients, taking time to prepare them, and then taking care when cooking and presenting them to your customers.
The phrase ‘slow news’ sound like a contradiction – and we don’t plan to be slow. However, we do plan to respect our ingredients and take the necessary time before serving it up to our readers.
We also want to play our part in promoting all the great aspects of community life. Please send us your news and views. We are happy to receive good news as well as contentious.
Sometimes, when all we see in social media is people locking horns, we need to be reminded that a community hangs together because of all the small things that people do for that community.
So please, feel free to contact The Glamorgan Star with your concerns, with your special events, and to let other people know how your community stays together.
- This article first appeared in print on 15th July 2021.
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Congratulations and best wishes to you and the team with this venture. I’m delighted to see Sharon Harris back covering the Vale – her knowledge of the area and contacts book is very impressive. You’ve got off to a great start with this new website and I look forward to picking up a copy of the paper in the days ahead.
Marcus, thank you for your kind words. Much appreciated.
Sincerely looking forward to reading articles. Professional journalism is something we should be fighting to maintain in the world of the echo chamber. So pleased to learn Sharon Harris back on her beat! Good luck.
Belinda, thank you for your kind words as it means a lot to us. We are very lucky to have Sharon on the team.
This is great news , fantastic to see print making a come back. Look forward to watching this star makes it’s ascension……
Hi Chris, thank you for your nice and positive comment. Our printed newspaper will always be at the very core of everything we do!
Good morning,
It’s good to see a local paper again! I have edition no. 2 but was away when no. 1 came out. Is there any chance of obtaining a copy somehow please, as a souvenir?
R Bradshaw
Thank you for your kind words. Much appreciated.
The first edition of the Glamorgan Star was received tremendously well, and is flying off the shelves this week too.
As a consequence of the success of the printed newspaper, no copies have been returned via our accredited distribution contractors from any of our outlets. Although we are delighted with this, it is unfortunate that there are no copies we can forward on to you.
It may be worth asking friends, family, colleagues or neighbours if they still have a copy you may have?
Glamorgan Star
Really enjoyed reading the newspaper’s first few editions.
Barry really needed this new paper since the Gem went. And online pop up sites give half the story and are very often wrong and run by people thinking the world revolves around them.
Good luck to the staff at The Glamorgan Star!
Jamie, thank you.
I began my career as a journalist in 1956 and have always held that a vibrant local press is essential not only to report the good, the bad and the ugly in the community but to hold politicians and others to account for their actions. The local paper is a linchpin of free speech, so all the best to the Star. Shine brightly!
Hi Derek. Thank you for your kind words and advice. You must have seen some remarkable changes within the industry during your career in newspapers.