JOURNALISTS from across the North and members of the public descended on York last night and issued an appeal to the Government to help protect the future of local news.

Members of the House of Commons’ Culture, Media and Sport Committee held the meeting at the city’s Park Inn Hotel as part of its inquiry into the crisis facing the local media industry.

The panel of five MPs, including the chairman John Whittingdale, took time to listen to what journalists and the communities they serve believe the Government should be doing to help save local newspapers, radio and TV stations.

With the rise of the internet and digital media and a decline in advertising revenue, analysts are predicting 650 regional media outlets could close over the next five years.

Sally Joynson, chief executive of Screen Yorkshire, which promotes the region’s film and media credentials, received loud applause from the audience after calling on the Government to invest more money into local news outlets.

She said: “We have some of the county’s finest investigative journalists and they do a fantastic job in unearthing local stories that then come to the national attention.

“What you get from local news is a representation of yourself, your world, your environment and your interests and that, I think, is absolutely sacrosanct.

“If it is such an important part of every day life, then the Government has to find the funding to finance it.”

Andy Hudson, sales and marketing manager of Platinum Print, in York, said the role of local papers was invaluable and praised The Press’s York Means Business campaign.

He said: “I think the national media was making the recession worse with all its stories of gloom and doom. Customers were fed up with hearing it.

“But The Press has been absolutely fantastic for business. It is running a campaign called York Means Business, where the paper focuses on how well businesses are doing in York. It has been great.”

Steve Hughes, managing editor of The Press, said local newspapers and their websites had a vital role to play in local democracy.

He said: “We invest in quality journalism to bring to attention matters of public concern as well as all sorts of other news and information that our readers are interested in.

“We are at the heart of the community in York and the surrounding area and if the Government, local authorities and other organisations are serious about preserving a free and democratic press, then they should back that up by continuing to support us.”

The committee will also hold a series of formal oral evidence sessions in Westminster over the coming months, and will publish a report with its findings to which the Government must respond.