The Bristol Cable

The Bristol Cable is an independent media outlet and not-for-profit media cooperative that publishes local journalism in print and online.

In 2014, a group of volunteers created The Bristol Cable, aiming to bridge the gap between community members' lack of trust in the local media and the absence of representation of Bristol communities in the media. The organisation is 100% owned by its members.

Beyond supporting The Bristol Cable financially, the members are democratic shareholders. They can attend the annual general meetings, vote on editorial campaigns, and stand in elections for the non-executive directors' board. The staff members run the Cable as a cooperative and a board of volunteer non-executive directors, whose members directly elect, help to guide, advise, and steer the outlet forward.

The Bristol Cable aims to reinvent the meaning of local media with its coverage, holding power to account through investigations and amplifying marginalised voices. It produces journalism driven by the Bristol community.

The organisation won the 2019 British Journalism Award in the local journalism category.

Some of the projects The Bristol Cable has developed are for the purpose of upskilling people in journalism. It has offered a free journalism training course in partnership with the Centre for Investigative Journalism (CIJ) and paid placements for early-career journalists.

The Bristol Cable is financed through grants from philanthropic foundations, memberships, and local advertising.

Last updated: January 2023