William Turvill of the Press Gazette reports that Fleet Street’s last religious affairs position axed as Ruth Gledhill leaves Times after 27 years.
There are also to be changes at the BBC as Wyatt switches from defence to religion.
Nick Baines blogs Religion for the Times.
Michael Sadgrove blogs Farewell to Ruth Gledhill, Fleet Street’s Last Full-Time Religious Affairs Correspondent.
The National Secular Society reports Big changes for religious reporting.
Depressingly short-sighted move even by the canons of Murdoch press. Ruth has served the cause of public debate about faith and religion well. She and her ilk will be sadly missed. The secular air-brushing continues…
I can’t help but think that this is good news for Ruth Gledhill who can finally dig herself out from underneath the paywall that has effectively silenced her for years.
I look forward to hearing much more from her in years to come.
I agree with Pete! Short-sighted and disappointing. As a one-time regional newspaper journo who amongst other things covered religious affairs, Ruth was one of those colleagues who one respected hugely. She digs deeply, grasps the issues, and really does care about the Church in all its maddening eccentricity. These days it is hard to find a reporter, local or national who has any sense of what religious faith of any of the main world religions, lived out in a local community is really about, and who can appreciate that it’s more than just arguments at Synods about sex, cash and… Read more »
Back in 2003 Ruth turned up for LGCMs Half Way to Lambeth conference in Manchester, she was poorly and had a babe in arms, but stayed for the whole two days. In a misstep that gave us even greater national coverage the then bishop decided we should not be allowed to celebrate the Conference Service on the Sunday as previously arranged with the Dean. Here’s a mention from the BBC http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/manchester/3079952.stm the story ran and ran. LGCM finally had the service at that wonderful Manchester church, St John Chrysostom. Ruth’s very subtle contribution to the debacle was to attend both… Read more »