"Democracy can't exist without newspapers" was the headline of former Scotsman editor Tim Luckhurst's article in the Independent on Monday. He was writing about the declining fortunes of two of Scotland's biggest national papers; the Herald and the Scotsman. Luckhurst charts the decline of the newspaper for which he "once hired foreign correspondents from Washington DC to Beijing", but "is now a parochial rag with meagre claim to influence in Edinburgh". He cites the 9.18% drop in the Scotsman's sales in the year ending January 2009, and a parallel figure of 9.7% for the Herald.

Many London based newspapers print Scottish editions, but "until recently Scottish newspapers were the only titles published outside London that could possibly claim national status." To survive, they had to cover Scotland better than their rivals, and cover world news to the same level as their London based competitors. However, recent spates of redundancies and a "brain drain" of talented journalists migrating from Scottish newspapers to their London counterparts has left the editorial quality of these two Scottish newspapers somewhat depleted.

Luckhurst sees this as a threat to democracy in Scotland. The relatively new devolved system of power under which Scotland is run requires an independent and in some ways exclusive form of journalism, separate to that which is provided in the Scottish editions of London papers. The London papers could provide it, says Luckhurst, but only with extensive funding - and that is unlikely to be forthcoming. He quotes a former editor of a Scottish title, who recently said "Scotland is in danger of becoming the first modern democracy without reliable organs of free speech."

Elsewhere in the UK, business secretary Lord Mandelson has spoken out against a Sarkozy-style government bailout for newspapers through subsidisation, although he is for "maintaining public sector advertising and applying cross media competition rules". The chief executives of the UK's top regional newspaper groups lobbied the communications minister Lord Carter for a relaxation of merger restrictions during a secret meeting at the beginning of February. Of a similar opinion, Luckhurst believes that if Scottish newspapers cannot provide the coverage that the country's system needs, "some wag of an MSP may propose state-subsidised newspapers".

The issue over subsidisation of newspapers is a somewhat contradictory one; independent journalism is essential to maintain democracy in a country. Without the checks and balances provided by a free press, and its editorial duty to keep the public aware of governmental issues facing the country, there is danger of different levels of corruption. As a result, any genuine democracy will naturally want to keep the press in a healthy and independent state. But with the current economic climate, some publications, such as the Scotsman and the Herald, are struggling and there has been resulting speculation over governmental aid - in Spain, for example.

However, does such subsidisation entirely contradict the notion of a free press, independent from political influence? A newspaper may hesitate to contradict or criticise a body upon which it is financially dependent, and that small hesitation could amount to a large flaw in the democratic ideal of an independent media. In the same vein, dependent on how subsidies were distributed, they could have no effect at all upon the editorial line of a publication. It is a problem constantly under debate at the moment, and the effects of already implemented bailouts in countries such as France will prove essential viewing for industry heads and governments alike.

Source: The Independent, Press Gazette