Protesters at Saturday’s rally in Newcastle.
Almost 1000 supporters met at Newcastle’s Civic Park on Saturday to rally against Fairfax Media plans to move jobs from the Newcastle Herald office to New Zealand.
Politicians along with mayors from across the region, including mayor of Maitland, Cr Peter Blackmore, took to the stage calling for the media giant to change its mind.
Maitland businessman Hilton Grugeon was another who joined the fight.
“It appears that this issue is concerning everyone from the rabid right to the loony left and everyone in between,” he said.
Last week Fairfax Media announced it would move 41 editorial production positions to New Zealand making positions redundant at the Newcastle Herald.
There are plans for a similar move at the Illawarra Mercury.
During the rally Cr Blackmore read a letter to the crowd from Hunter Councils.
The letter stated that a ‘healthy democracy requires a healthy media.’
In a statement to staff last Wednesday, Fairfax Regional Media chief executive and publisher, Allan Browne, said: “FRM is committed to ensuring its publishing and media businesses remain the news sources of choice in the communities they serve, but like all parts of Fairfax, FRM is facing a rapidly transforming operating environment and must change with it.”