Is the new Editor of The Telegraph a Cameroon?

Will Lewis - who had been running the Telegraph's emerging digital operation and its move to new multimedia headquarters in Victoria Street - has been appointed as the new Editor of The Daily Telegraph.  Just 37, he takes over from Acting Editor John Bryant who will remain as Editor-in-Chief.

The Times notes that "unlike previous editors of the broadsheet, Mr Lewis has no background in Conservative or right-of-centre politics".  CCHQ will hope that Mr Lewis will be more positive about Project Cameron than the outgoing editorial team.  The Telegraph leader columns have been consistently Hefferesque in tone for many months.   

The Barclay Brothers, owners of the newspaper, may also be hoping that Mr Lewis' immersion in new technology will give the newspaper an advantage in the digital age.

See Guardian story and Telegraph announcement.

Comments

[CDM]

The Torygraph writing supportive editorials for the Tory Party? Now there's a novel concept.

Let's hope it catches on!

[Modern Conservative]

Bring back Charles Moore thats what I say - now he was a great editor.

I hope the DT becomes less Hefferesque in tone for it's own good. It wouldn't surprise me if his presence is driving away readers - it's part of the reason that I stopped buying it. That and the fact it's so difficult to read on the tube.

[A H Matlock]

I cancelled my subscription too, on Heffer's account. If they clean up their act and tell Heffer to take a hike, I'll take it up again.

[Ian Lewis, Wallasey, Wirral]

Yes, it's amazing how dated and old-fashioned the rant of the Telegraph and the Mail seem since DC was elected. Reminds me of John Major's quote, 'Harking back to a golden era that never was'. And, that, I can say, is the last time I ever quote John Major!

[Tory Solicitor]

Heffer is very bright but he seems to have taken a bizarre personal dislike to DC.

odd

[James Maskell]

If the Telegraph is biased towards Cameron I wouldnt think it the best thing. We need papers that arent automatically yes-papers. They need to challenge Cameron when the policies/strategy or presentation arent right.

[EdR]

Good luck to him. This former subscriber is hopeful. If they sack Heffer, I may pick up a copy again. I'm not paying a penny toward his noxious verbal diarrhoea.

[michael mcgough]

Does this explain the pulling of the Sykes's Speak Out story after the first edition today.

[matt wright]

Trying to be even handed on this. I have bought the DT every day for many years but less so recently as it has started to look dated. I am looking around for a suitable daily "broadsheet" paper with intelligent modern comment and struggling to find one that really fits. I don't like the Guardian as it is blindly left wing. The Independent also tends to be that way. The Times almost fits the bill but seems to run what appear to be Govt spun pieces every now and again, which detracts from the authenticity. If the DT became a bit more progressive it could do better,

Matt

[RodS]

If the DT returns to heavyweight political comment and reduces the sheer volume of 'Lifestyle and Women's Issues - then great. It now takes hardly any time to get through because the centre spread - including Heffer - is the only section worth reading. Hiring Peter Hitchens would really make my day.

[malcolm]

I hope the DT continues to broadly reflect all shades of Conservative opinion.If it becomes predictably pro or anti Cameroonian I think it will be its loss and ours.

[A H Matlock]

Malcolm - wouldn't you say it is already predictably anti-Cameron? I don't expect them to praise him to the skies every day, but a bit less cynicism and cattiness would hardly go amiss.

[A H Matlock]

Sorry to go off topic, but October's Populus Poll has just come out:

Con 36%
Lab 35%
LD 18%

But, it also shows David Cameron with a substantial lead over either Brown, Reid or Johnson. A Blair boost, apparently.

[malcolm]

No I wouldn't say it is always anti Cameron.Some leaders have mentioned (as have other newspapers) Camerons policy lite approach but outside Heffer I don't think any of the other contributors are predictable either pro or anti which in my opinion is a good thing.We should always have our prejudices challenged which is why I read the Grauniad and the Daily Mail (both excellent newspapers) everyday too.

[A H Matlock]

Janet Daley is reliably Anti-Cameron as well, Malcolm, and as others have said, very many of their leaders read as though they could have been written by Heffer himself. I have objection to fair criticism, but it too often crosses the line into personal invective and bile.

[James Maskell]

That poll doesnt compare well to the last Populus poll... Tories stay the same, Labour up 3 and the Lib Dems down 2.

[Reagan Fan]

I've read the Telegraph since Ceasar was a boy, still do, will continue to do so. That said I don't bother reading Heffer's rants, I have better things to do like pick my nose. OK, Janet Daley is predictably anti-Cameron, but she's not blinded by hate like Heffer is.

[A H Matlock]

That last post of mine should read 'I have no objection to fair criticism...', rather.

James - The Populus poll is about where I expected we would be. Their weighting system does tend to produce a more favourable result for Labour than either ICM or YouGov. It will be interesting to see when the field work was carried out and how it compares to the ICM poll as published in the Sunday Telegraph.

[Dave McBay]

I cancelled my Telegraph subscription when it started being a propaganda sheet for Cameron's leadership bid. It isn't surprising that some of the paper's remaining writers have since realised the error of its ways and treats the light weight Tory leader with derision. Simon Heffer and Christopher Booker are certainly worth reading (but not much else). I can access the bits I like for nowt on the internet, so won't be resubscribing. Like the Conservative Party it has lost its way, convinced that playing around with typefaces and logos are what matter rather than substance.

[A H Matlock]

When was that, Dave? If memory serves, the Telegraph was the *last* of the major newspapers to endorse Cameron for leader, and then only grudgingly.

[populuspoll]

populus poll in tuesday times:

Tories 36
Labour 35

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-2396194,00.html

[Richard Carey]

I've taken the Telegraph for a few years - and a few years ago, it was a weighty broadsheet worthy of the name. I have been dismayed, but not surprised, by the tone in recent times. I would have readily changed my daily order to the Times, but somehow never got around to it.

I hope the new editor will take a step back from the predictable and archaic rants of Heffer (and possibly even give him back to the Daily Mail!), and allow us some more thoughtful and considered editorials. Some pieces recently do have the feel of spewing hatred not just at modern politics but at modern Britain, too.

Having said that, the polling that the DT frequently commission from YouGov often has interesting details, even if the analysis is occasionally open to question. Then again, isn't that the definition of political analysis?

With regard to other newspapers, I tend to read the Indy when it's given away at Conference etc, and find it quite a stimulating read - it's interesting to get something other than the usual right-wing press. Grabbed the Observer on Sunday, too, and a surprisingly good read. Guess that's political cross-dressing for you...

[G-MaN Wild]

Yes I too stopped reading the Telegraph after its poisen towards Project Cameron. The utter stupidness and inability to "get it" is quite unbelievable.
We wait in hope...

[Richard Carey]

Off topic, I know, but couldn't resist a quick look at this after your post.

populus poll in tuesday times: Tories 36
Labour 35

Interesting poll, that; especially given the disparity between the headline VI figures and the prediction in the case of a contests between DC-led Conservatives and Brown/Reid/Johnson-led Labour.

Apparently, at a hypothetical GE in 3 yrs time, the VI figures become CON 40%, LAB <= 34%.

I haven't dug into the Populus field-work to try and find the reason for this - does anyone have any feel for the projected difference between current and future VI?

People looking forward, thinking DC wll develop his themes? Or the probability that Labour will plump for a leader less attractive than Blair?

[christina speight]

christina I dropped The Times when it went tabloid and had a protracted correspondence with the Edotor at the time. My objections were primarily to the unmanageable bulk of a tabloid of that length and the totally illogical pagination. The replies I got largely boiled down to - - 'But at the end of the day I agree with you but I can't do it !!!' Since then it is clear that the tabloid format has affected news values.

So I moved to the Telegraph. IMO The letters aren't as good; the columnists are not quite as good overall, but the paper is well laid out and logical to read. Its news coverage is on-the-whole better.

But (pity I can't go down to 9pt here so as not to upset the Cameroons here any more than the latest poll does) Heffer makes me realise that sanity exists in the world still and that I'm not the only one to notice that the emperor HAS no clothes.. Whoops!

[christina speight]

christina I dropped The Times when it went tabloid and had a protracted correspondence with the Edotor at the time. My objections were primarily to the unmanageable bulk of a tabloid of that length and the totally illogical pagination. The replies I got largely boiled down to - - 'But at the end of the day I agree with you but I can't do it !!!' Since then it is clear that the tabloid format has affected news values.

So I moved to the Telegraph. IMO The letters aren't as good; the columnists are not quite as good overall, but the paper is well laid out and logical to read. Its news coverage is on-the-whole better.

But (pity I can't go down to 9pt here so as not to upset the Cameroons here any more than the latest poll does) Heffer makes me realise that sanity exists in the world still and that I'm not the only one to notice that the emperor HAS no clothes.. Whoops!

[Richard Carey]

My objections were primarily to the unmanageable bulk of a tabloid of that length

Agree with you there, Christina - folding the Times in half to fit in your briefcase these days is like a strongman stunt! And I'm pretty sure my papergirl wouldn't get it through my letterbox in one piece in the morning either!

[disillusioned activist]

Cynicism and cattiness at the Telegraph? Come, come AH Matlock. You have to look no further than this board and read the vitriolic comments about Simon Heffer to realise that some Cameron suppporters are not lacking in the cattiness stakes when it comes to attacking those who have the temerity to criticise the Beloved Leader.

Simon has his opinions which,however unpalatable they may be to some, he has the right to express. I often read SH and think 'Wow that's exactly how I feel'

May he long continue to be a thorn in the side of the Cameroons. The fact that they are riled by Simon says much about him...and them.

[A H Matlock]

Good for you then, DA. They need people like you to prop up their dropping circulation figures.

[changetowin]

The Telegraph is out of touch and out of date. A bit like the Conservatives before David Cameron. Let's hope the new Editor will take a more sensible line. But if he doesn't it doesn't matter so much. There is a sense in which Heffer's rants actually help. And by winning the leadership without the Telegraph and the Mail, DC has shown that he does not need these newspapers.

[Tam Large]

So now we will have three social-democrat parties, and all the papers will be social democrat. How will we know what is really happening outside the Blair / Cameroon fantasy world? Blogs I suppose...

[John Moss]

A Telegrapgh folded back on itself, so it is just one page wide, is easier to read on the tube than a tabloid Times held folded out - and is much more considerate to the people sat next to you.

If you are really dextrous, you can fold it vertically again and end up with a tall thin sliver which can be quickly "snapped" to turn the pages.

[TomTom]

The Telegraph is very "lite", like The Times. Only The Guardian seems to have real news. I can see The Telegraph folding if the Barclays don't get their act together, it is vapid.

[James Hellyer]

The Telegraph is out of touch and out of date.

That explains its consistently growing circulation figures.

[EdR]

I think the Telegraph absolutely should be criticising Cameron from the right. The problem with Heffer is he's too busy finding new, inventive ways to incorporate the word 'plonker' to produce anything of substance. There's much more informed, coherent and challenging right-wing commentary coming out of the blogosphere at the moment anyway.

[Andrew Ian Dodge]

JH durn it I was going to make that point.

The Telegraph has been sceptical about the Cameron project and it rightly should be so. Its not like its the Tories in-house paper. Britain has too many knee-jerk papers and needs sone that produces a bit of thought at times. Do wish they would bring back Mark Steyn however.

[TomTom]

That explains its consistently growing circulation figures.

Learn how circulation figures are compiled first.........they are designed to attract advertisers and so include all the free copies on aircraft, hotel rooms, etc.......the aim is to get advertising and that needs circulation figures which as Peter Preston often comments in The Observer are faked

[malcolm]

James H,you're wrong ,the DT has been in long term decline and is no selling less than a million copies a day.When I worked at the Times in the late '80's the Telegraph outsold the Times by 3-1. Now its less than 1.5-1.

[Esbonio]

I was raised on the Daily Telegraph and so it took a long time for me to finally stop getting it every day of the week. I thought Charles Moore was an excellent editor but I have not found the changes since his departure particularly attractive. It has become too "lite" and too "lifestyle" orientated. I also find the paper gives too much vent to the Notting Hill tendency for my non-metropolitan liking. As for Simon Heffer, I do not agree with everything he says but I do agree with some and I find the strident (to say the least) comments fom some of his detractors tiresome and predcitable.

[Thatcher for leader]

What's wrong with Heffer - he's the only sensible person on the paper. Frankly, I find the hold back from going for Cameron. I think the problem for Heffer, like so many who have worke din the media, is he knows his quarry too well.

[changetowin]

What's wrong with Heffer - he's the only sensible person on the paper.

You are joking, right?

[Andrew Woodman]

The Telegraph will continue to suffer a decline until it embraces the tabloid format. Refusing to lives up to the perception that it's old fashioned and out of date. Hopefully a Cameroon editor might make efforts to resolve this.

[Daniel Vince-Archer]

"Just 37, he takes over from Acting Editor John Bryant who will remain as Editor-in-Chief."

Tsk tsk. Surely his age is irrelevant, even if he is half the age of the average Telegraph reader?

Still, if it means he will bring the Telegraph more in touch with the modern world and curb the influence of the likes of the Heffersaurus, I suppose it could be important.

[Og]

Another -qualified- supporter of Heffer here. Much of what he says is entirely fair comment, whether you agree with it or not. His only sin, it seems to me, is that it has become personal, which is boring and dilutes his argument.

But he attacks the Cameron project from the right, as does the excellent Janet Daley. This is very much a job for the Telegraph, as no other paper, apart I suppose from the Mail, has the perspective to do this. All the rest comment from a left view.

I also hate the Hello magazine nature of so much of the paper and the lifestyle rubbish. In the old days the closest they got to lifestyle was RWF Poole discussing where to get a decent pair of boots and the odd old cook advising us what to do with a hare.

This is what happens when a newspaper tries to become a "family" newspaper. Out goes Mark Steyn and in comes Peaches Geldof. Says it all!

[RodS]

Beautifully put Og - end of discussion.

[Craig]

Is it wrong to read the Guardian if Im a Tory voter?

[Phil]

I might not always totally agree with him but I like Heff and enjoy his Saturday peices with his references to "Dave" - I regard this more as banter while making a serious point!

I hope the DT continues to comment from the right of Mr Cameron - this should be welcomed as the Conservative Party is supposed to be a 'broad church', we are told, and therefore should welcome comment from all sections of Tory opinion, including from the Right from the DT! So more Heffer, Janet Daley...and other writers that challenge what the liberal'left the establishment tell us to believe, and expose the truth about things like political correctness, the EU, and the terrorist threat... Philip Johnston had an excellent article on 2nd Oct : "How long before marriage is illegal?" about how EU-inspired regulations might erode some of our freedoms. If the DT becomes more Cameroon - it already has Cameroon writers - I may cease buying it.

[Tam Large]

Heffer-lump is the best bit (after Christopher Booker). Good to hear people unafraid to voice their opinions. Keep them and dump the rest I say!