| Great Central Gazette | |
| Owners: | Multi-stakeholder co-operative |
| Founder: | Rhys Everquill, Emma Guy, Megan Lupton |
| Editor: | Rhys Everquill (Managing Editor) and Emma Guy (Commissioning Editor) |
| Foundation: | 3 January 2023 (registered), 31 March 2023 (launched, online) |
| Language: | English, translatable in 100 languages including Gujarati, Punjabi, Urdu, Hindi, Polish and Arabic. |
| Publishing City: | Leicester |
| Website: | https://greatcentralgazette.org |
The Great Central Gazette is an independent and not-for-profit newspaper in Leicester, UK.[1] It publishes feature articles and investigative journalism, and it runs media literacy workshops and training sessions.[2] The Great Central Gazette is a cooperative,[3] which means that its members are owners. Members pay a monthly or annual fee based on The Bristol Cable model.
The Gazette was founded by Rhys Everquill, Emma Guy and Megan Lupton. It is a member of Co-operatives UK, IMPRESS, Independent Media Association and Social Enterprise UK.[4]
The Gazette was founded by Rhys Everquill, Emma Guy and Megan Lupton after a crowdfunding campaign and a small grant from Central England Co-operative.[5] [6] It was formed in opposition to the Leicester Mercury business model, which, like other Reach plc publications, has been accused of clickbait, sensationalism, and intrusive advertising.[7]
As of April 2023, membership costs £2 per month to join,[8] with the option to contribute more.[9] It has three volunteer staff members. Membership provides a means of funding the newspaper and a vote on key decisions. In return, members get access to additional newsletters and early access to multimedia journalism.
The newspaper has further funding from De Montfort University, Scurrah Wainwright Charity, Lush (company),[10] Midcounties Co-operative, among others. [11]
The Gazette has pledged to launch a print newspaper in 2025.[12] [13]