Based in Glasgow and founded in 1783, The Glasgow Herald, is reputed to be the longest continuously published daily newspaper in the English speaking world. Did you know that the Herald is owned by a massive American media corporation? Surprised? You shouldn’t be.

Influenced by the massive media mergers in the United States, the media environment in Scotland has witnessed trends towards media consolidation and foreign ownership. Further, these changes occurred because of major recent changes in UK law. According to the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) with the passing of the 'Communications Act of 2003' the United Kingdom now has the most liberal media ownership rules in all of Europe.1 The Act relaxed the laws governing non-European media ownership of UK media and loosened laws around cross-media ownership and cross promotion.

Who’s Who? Major Media Outlets Operating in Scotland

In an effort to untangle the intricate web of relationships of and between the media organisations which operate in Scotland, this overview and map lists some of the companies who dominate the Scottish media environment. The BBC, BskyB, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5, ITN and News Corporation are also clearly represented in Scotland.

Newsquest Plc is a wholly owned subsidiary of North America's largest publisher, Gannett Corporation.2 Newsquest is the second largest regional newspaper publisher in the UK. Its publications include 17 daily newspapers with a combined circulation of approximately 725,000. In December 2002 the Scottish Media Group (SMG) effectively sold The Herald, The Sunday Herald and The Evening Times, Glasgow, to Gannett for £216 million. The sale was approved in March 2003.3

Holyrood Holdings Ltd 4 is perhaps best known for its reclusive owners, the media moguls, Sir David and Sir Frederick Barclay. They own The Scotsman and Scotland on Sunday (Purchased from Thompson Publishing in 1995), The Daily Telegraph (Purchased from Hollinger in 2004), Edinburgh Evening News and The Business. Additional business interests include the Ritz Hotel in London and Littlewoods mail order operations.5

Johnston Press Plc, based in Edinburgh is the fourth largest publisher in the UK. It was established in 1767 and now operates in over 140 markets across the United Kingdom. Papers include: Glasgow East News.

Scot FM is owned by the London based Wireless Group Plc and has around 450,000 listeners.

The Scottish Media Group Plc or SMG, was created by Canadian media company, Thompson Group. SMG is a Glasgow-based media conglomerate with interests in TV, radio, cinema, advertising and print. ITV Plc is believed to own a 'significant stake' in SMG. Amongst others, SMG owns and operates Scottish TV and Grampian TV; Virgin Radio; Pearl & Dean, who sell cinema advertising, and Primesight who sell outdoor advertising such as billboards.

Scottish Radio Holdings (SRH) dominates commercial radio in Scotland with 15 radio stations including: Clyde One and Clyde Two (which reach1.1 million listeners), Radio Forth, Radio Tay, NorthSound Radio, WestSound Radio, Moray Firth Radio and Radio Borders. In 2004, SMG sold its 27.8% stake in SRH to the broadcasting group EMAP for £90.5m.6

The Trinity Mirror Group Plc is reputedly the largest publisher in the United Kingdom and is responsible for approximately 250 newspaper titles. Scottish national titles include the Scottish Daily Record, the Sunday Mail, Daily Mirror, Sunday Mirror along with the Scottish Metro and The Glaswegian. The Trinity Mirror group also owns Scottish & Universal Newspapers Ltd which run a large number of local newspapers in Scotland.7