STAFF at The Herald publishers, Newsquest, are this morning being invited to attend a meeting being addressed by boss, Tim Blott, who will be outlining the company’s year plan.
Two staff briefings – one at 9.30am, the other an hour later – will also provide a chance for staff to grill their editors about forthcoming strategy.
One possible topic of discussion might be a management proposal that reporters take with them, while on assignment, a sophisticated mobile telephone, to allow them to take pictures also.
By coincidence, also today, National Union of Journalists’ officials at Newsquest are meeting privately, to discuss the next terms and conditions ‘house agreement’. It is expected they will be looking for reassurances from management that any use of mobile phone cameras will not jeopardise photographers’ jobs.
“We’re not Luddites, but safeguards need to be in place,” said one union insider.
It’s not clear whether any photographs taken, using the phones, would be for online use only or for both online and print.
