Review of UK and world papers and coverage of UK and global journalism stories and Journalism History for Thursday 26th February 2026.
Journalism is the first draft of history and these daily reports seek to provide an online briefing of the history of journalism for each day featured.
The Chartered Institute of Journalists remembers all the professional journalists and media workers murdered and killed while doing their work this year in all parts of the world and remember the immense sacrifice of those who gave their lives to the profession in the past. We send our condolences to their families, friends and professional colleagues.
The Chartered Institute of Journalists wishes to make it absolutely clear that all our reporting of stories about journalism and media saying ‘reports’ ‘writes for’ ‘briefing’ or attribution followed by colon, does not imply or mean our agreement or endorsing with the quoted headline or linked story. Our policy is impartiality & apolitical.
X posts:-
BBC News Papers’ Review analysing front pages of UK national newspapers for Thursday 26th February 2026: “‘Met exposed Hoyle’ and ‘Iran tempts Trump.'” See: https://x.com/CIoJournalist/status/2026915041434370128
To:
Sky News The Wrap presented by Anna Botting with guests Adam Boulton and Lucy Fisher discussing front pages of UK national newspapers for Thursday 26th February 2026. Express: ‘Just say Non! Don’t reward French for boats failure.’ See: https://x.com/CIoJournalist/status/2026918669159440607
CIoJ LinkedIn news edited by Liz Justice:
Former BBC journalist Vincent Kearney and the corporation is bringing a case against the police and security services MI5. See: https://www.linkedin.com/…/urn:li:activity…
To:
Salvadoran journalist Carlos Dada will be in Oxford on 9 March to deliver the Reuters Memorial Lecture. See: https://linkedin.com/…/urn:li:activity…
Latest CIoJ LinkedIn news feed stories edited by Liz Justice at: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/63500/
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Chatered Institute of Journalists Young Journalist of the Year Awards 2026
Business and Financial Journalist of the year category sponsored by Cavendish
‘We’re delighted that Cavendish Tech and Innovation is sponsoring the Business/Financial Journalist of the Year category at The Chartered Institute of Journalists (CIoJ) Young Journalist of the Year Awards 2026. This comes as part of our ongoing commitment to supporting the media industry and championing new journalistic talent.
These awards celebrate the very best young journalists across the UK, recognising outstanding achievements by those aged 30 and under. Specifically, the Business/Financial Journalist of the Year award highlights impactful stories that cover the business/financial aspects of a particular company, sector, or issue – from funding and corporate governance to financial outcomes and strategic insight.
See: https://www.cioj.org/young-journalists-awards-2026/
The Winners of the 2026 Young Journalist of the Year Awards will be announced 17th March 2026.
Finalists for 2026 Awards
YOUNG BUSINESS/FINANCIAL JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR
Nikou Asgari, Financial Times
Lucy Frost, International Financial Review
Sofia Gerace, mlex.com
YOUNG NEWS REPORTER OF THE YEAR
Charlotte Anderson, Romford Recorder/Local London
Isabel Clark, Southwark News
Megan Owen, BBC London
YOUNG ENVIRONMENT JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR
Charlotte Anderson, Romford Recorder/London Local
Ellen Ormesher, DeSmog UK
YOUNG CAMPAIGNING JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR
Charlotte Anderson, Romford Recorder – online and in print
Patricia Figueiredo, mlex.com
YOUNG FEATURE WRITER OF THE YEAR
Simon Ezra-Jackson, The Damned, print magazine, The New World. print/online
Annaliese Smith, moretohistory.com, Birmingham Dispatch, Discover Wildlife
Joseph Watt, Ultramarathon, print magazine/online, The Offset, print magazine/online.
YOUNG POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT OF THE YEAR
Jiji Ahn, BBC News
Jasmine Cameron-Chileshe, ITV National News
Amy Gibbons, The Daily Telegraph
YOUNG ARTS JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR
Katie Chambers, The Stage
Sofia de la Cruz, Wallpaper
Evie Glen, Metal magazine
YOUNG TRAVEL JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR
Alice Barnes-Brown, Travel Weekly
Kira Richards, National Geographic(UK)/Sunday Times
Annaliese Smith, Independent/Wired For Adventure
YOUNG HEALTH JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR
Amy Borrett, Financial Times
Ella Kipling, Mirror/Wales Online
Eliza Slawther, Pink Sheet
YOUNG SPORTS JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR
Jamie Barton, CNN Digital Sports, London
Aryan Jolly, The Real EFL/The Football Deck/Wisden
Joseph Ryan, Kent Standard/Football Writers’ Association
YOUNG SHOW BIZ JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR
Evie Glen, The List, online magazine
Ella Kipling, The Mirror
The nominations are listed alphabetically and the winner in each category will be announced at the Young Journalist Awards presentations, on Tuesday 17th March at the Leonardo Royal Hotel, Tower Hill, following the Society of Editors Annual Conference, beginning with a reception at 6.00pm.
Many congratulations to winners, specially commended and finalists in inaugural 2025 CIoJ Young Journalist of the Year Awards, on 25th March 2025. See: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/live-group_youngjournalistawards-journalismmatters-cioj-activity-7310632030642339840-68d4?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAeLiVwB8a2_okGmo5JT2aJ02kIVH-ra9No
Gerald Bowey is the present President of the Chartered Institute of Journalists and Caroline Roddis, the Vice-President. Their roles were confirmed in a handover event at the Reform Club in Central London on Tuesday 20th February 2024.
Bowey emphasised the guidance, support, and encouragement that had been at the heart of the Institute for 140 years and announced the launch of a new Young Journalist of the Year awards scheme that would encourage journalists under 30 years of age to enter a range of categories.
Commenting Bowey said: “the Institute is focused on supporting working journalists, both in-house and freelance, in the workplace, as a trade union, and in sustaining journalists in difficult circumstances as a charitable trust.
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Two Fellows of the Chartered Institute of Journalists at the heart of British Journalism History
T.P.O’Connor founder of London campaigning evening newspaper The Star in 1888 and Arthur Burrows the first journalist and news presenter at the B.B.C. 1922.
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CIoJ member Clare Hollingworth OBE (1911-2017) – The first war correspondent to report the outbreak of World War II, described as “the scoop of the century”
Listen to Imperial War Museum archive interview with Clare recorded in 2001
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CIoJ X news feed at: https://x.com/CIoJournalist
CIoJ LinkedIn news feed edited by Liz Justice at: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/63500/
CIoJ Facebook news feed at: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100077475452242
Official CIoJ LinkedIn site for Institute news and projects at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-chartered-institute-of-journalists/posts/?feedView=all
Chartered Institute of Journalists website at: https://www.cioj.org/
Review of UK national newspapers for Thursday 26th February 2026
Good morning. Here’s a look at how ten of today’s national newspapers are leading their front pages.
Several titles focus on developments surrounding Peter Mandelson and the controversy over an alleged “flight risk” tip-off.
The i leads with the headline: “Reeves: Andrew must pay back any misused taxpayer money”, reporting calls from the Chancellor for repayment if public funds were improperly used.
The Daily Mail goes further with: “IS PRINCE OF DARKNESS UP TO HIS OLD SPIN TRICKS?”, alongside its claim that a police probe “descends into farce” after officers revealed the Commons Speaker was the source of a tip-off.
The Daily Mirror frames it as “COMMONS MISTAKE…”, and prominently carries Sir Keir Starmer’s message: “DON’T LET HATE WIN”, describing it as a fight for the “nation’s soul”.
The Independent headline reads: “Speaker tipped off police Mandelson was a flight risk”, calling it an “extraordinary admission” and focusing on the political ramifications.
The Guardian also reports on the fallout, with: “Met apology for revealing Hoyle was tipoff source”, highlighting the Metropolitan Police’s apology to the Speaker.
Meanwhile, the Daily Telegraph shifts attention to NHS funding, declaring: “Doubling cash for NHS ‘had no impact’”, citing an ex-Tory minister’s claim that billions in additional spending failed to improve outcomes.
The Times also concentrates on the health service, leading with: “NHS ‘incentivised’ to wrongly record babies’ deaths as stillborn”, and separately reporting: “Epstein ‘used UK as hub to traffic scores of women’”.
Health is the dominant theme for the Guardian, whose splash reads: “Damning report exposes scandal of NHS maternity unit ‘cover-ups’”, pointing to serious failings in care.
Elsewhere, the Daily Express turns to Channel crossings with the stark headline: “JUST SAY NON! DON’T REWARD FRENCH FOR BOATS FAILURE”, urging an end to payments to France after more than 600 migrants reportedly crossed the Channel.
The Star pivots to celebribity and media with the front page story: “Strictly Pete fears apes will take over our planet. Gorillas get on my Wicks.”
And the Sun leads with a media controversy: “BAFTA ROW JOHN: BLAME THE BBC”, over an incident involving an on-air slur, while the Daily Star opts for a lighter tone with: “Gorillas get on my Wicks”, referencing comments attributed to Sir Pete Wicks.
Across the papers, there’s a clear split between political accountability, NHS scrutiny, migration policy and media controversies — with several titles returning to questions of conduct, transparency and responsibility at the heart of public life.
That’s a snapshot of today’s front pages.
Review of front pages of UK’s regional England, and nation Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland newspapers
Good morning. Here is a further look at the front pages from across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, reflecting a mix of court developments, public safety concerns and community stories.
In Scotland, The Scotsman leads with a police apology after a murder conviction. Its headline reads: “Police apology for failings as shotgun killer found guilty.” The paper reports that officers initially treated the death as non-suspicious for several days. The Daily Record carries the same case prominently under the stark headline “CLUELESS”, alongside the strapline “SHOTGUN ASSASSIN FOUND GUILTY”, focusing on the five days before the shooting was formally recognised.
Also in Scotland, The Herald turns to healthcare, leading with “Minister: ‘I believe hospitals are safe’”, but notes there are “No dates for maternity review”, keeping scrutiny on maternity services.
And the left-wing The National reports on its front page “Scots-based firm told to rule out Gaza Gas Grab. Exclusive: Dana Petroleum urged not to bid for new Israeli licences.’
In Northern Ireland, The Irish News reports on a fatal road collision with the headline “‘Unimaginable’ pain as two young Derry men killed in Donegal crash.” The paper describes the community impact following the deaths of two young men. The Belfast Telegraph focuses on a separate court case, leading with “Live stream ‘peddled as an alibi’ shown to Natalie jury”, as proceedings continue in a murder trial.
In Wales, the Western Mail leads with a sentencing outcome under the headline “Man who shook baby to death jailed for life.” The paper also flags concerns about maternity care elsewhere in the edition. The South Wales Echo reports on financial crime, with “CRIMINAL PAIR TO PAY BACK £200K”, after a judge ordered a couple to hand over what the paper describes as ill-gotten gains.
From England’s regional press, the Yorkshire Post highlights environmental crime, leading with “Criminals burying farmland with waste”, and warns that fly-tipping has reached record levels. The Manchester Evening News reports on a security incident with the headline “MEN ENTERED MOSQUE WITH WEAPONS HAUL”, adding that an “Intruder armed with axe [was] apprehended at scene while officers hunt second suspect.”
In the UK’s second largest city The Birmingham Post reports: “Shame’ as Labour ditch city’s budget vote in more council chaos.” The front page photograph is of Jeffrey Epstein sitting in jet with the caption: “Passenger mystery of Epstein’s Brum flights.“
Meanwhile, the free daily Metro, distributed across English cities, carries a crime story under the bold headline “High rollers”, referring to what it describes as a “Huge cannabis factory in town centre casino.”
Across the regions, many of the papers are dominated by court verdicts, police investigations and public service accountability, alongside stories reflecting the impact of crime on families and communities.
That’s a snapshot of how the front pages are shaping up across the UK this morning.
CIoJ LinkedIn news stories, Hold The Front Page news stories, Guardian media news stories, Press Gazette news stories, Arab News media stories and other stories from miscellaneous sources
The Institute calls on Belarus to release the journalists and media workers it has detained. Belarus is currently ranked 167th out of 180 countries in the World Press Freedom Index. See: https://rsf.org/en/country/belarus RSF states: ‘To silence independent journalists, the authorities have resorted to state-sponsored terrorism, including censorship, violence, mass arrests, and coordinated raids on homes and media offices, as well as disbanding the Association of Belarusian Journalists (BAJ).’
The CIoJ calls on all governments and states unjustly detaining journalists for doing their professional work to respect freedom of expression, the right to liberty and free them immediately. See: https://rsf.org/en/new-record-number-journalists-jailed-worldwide
North American Newspapers for Thursday 26th February 2026
French Newspapers for Thursday 26th February 2026
Montage of world newspapers Thursday 26th February 2026
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This posting has been produced with the assistance of AI editorial and production services from ChatGPT Plus and Gemini.
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