Industrial relations under new ownership – The case of provincial newspapers in Britain Available to Purchase

This paper examines changes in industrial relations in a large number of provincial newspapers (existing and acquired) following expansion through acquisition by previously medium‐sized newspaper groups. It considers whether acquisition leads to forces for change or continuity, diversity or uniformity, resulting in differing industrial relations outcomes. It concludes that while there are severe difficulties in evaluating the consequences of acquisition on industrial relations, the degree of change is much less than might be expected.