News UK celebrates lift off of News Academy - the sustainable future for great British journalism

Fifteen budding young journalists of the future joined News UK CEO, Mike Darcey, today to call on all 16-18 year olds interested in a career in journalism and news to sign up to the News Academy, the company's innovative initiative to find and invest in the next generation of journalistic talent.

News UK, publisher of The Times, Sunday Times and The Sun wants to continue delivering the world-class, award-winning and distinctive journalism that its loyal customers expect and in the format that suits their changing needs – be that a newspaper, tablet, smartphone or the internet – and is making a considerable investment in the initiative to achieve this goal.

The unique event to launch the News Academy and its website was held at the company’s UK headquarters in East London and was supported by John Witherow, Martin Ivens and David Dinsmore the respective editors of its world renowned titles.

Beginning with its first key conference in Glasgow on 25 February the News Academy aims to engage students in at least 350 schools across the land and attract them to become the world-class journalists of tomorrow. Four more conferences will be held throughout 2014 in Manchester, London, Cardiff and Dublin – key centres for News UK’s publishing operations.

In addition to the major programme of conferences, workshops, master-classes and summer schools will also be held across the UK in the coming years and run by journalists from all of News UK's titles who will impart their unique skills, knowledge and experience.

News UK CEO, Mike Darcey, said:

“At News UK we have made a real commitment to help secure a sustainable future for our professional journalism so that we can stay at the cutting edge of this rapidly-changing industry in the digital era.

“The way people consume news may change, but it will always be our job to provide high quality news, entertainment, comment and opinion and to challenge the world around us to equip our readers to make informed decisions in their lives. Through the News Academy, we hope to help and inspire the newsmakers of tomorrow to continue fulfilling this vital role.”