Local newspaper Lakeland Echo closes print edition

Posted by Elizabeth Redman on February 1, 2010 at 12:36 PM

A weekly newspaper in the British region of Cumbria has closed its print edition after 30 years in publication, Hold the Front Page reports.

The Lakeland Echo closed at the end of the last year. Its website will continue to operate and will feature news from north Lancashire and the Lake District.

There were no redundancies as it was produced out of the same office as sister publications The Visitor and Lancaster and Morecambe Reporter.

The paper was first published in 1979 and founded by journalist Andrew Wilson. He shared some reflections of his time at the paper on the website.

"I regard 30 years as an achievement for a local paper when hundreds of local papers around the country have come and gone in a much shorter time," he said. "In fact, on my Christmas cards, I was reminding some of the early workers with whom I am still in touch that the Echo chalked up its thirtieth anniversary this year and that was something worth celebrating."

The paper was bought by Morecambe Press Ltd in 1982 and was more recently part of Johnston Press' Lancaster and Morecambe Newspapers division.

"I am very grateful that Morecambe Press came along at that time and felt that the Echo was something they could usefully add to their portfolio and make a success of," Wilson said. "They ensured its survival for many more years, and I am most appreciative of that."

Several newspapers in the UK, across the US and around the world have closed recently. Although some have been resurrected after mergers or acquisitions, it seems more common to continue publication in digital form only.

Sources: Hold the Front Page, Lakeland Echo