The Northern Echo’s and the Hartlepool Mail have been banned from the Victoria Park ground as Hartlepool United is in dispute with the newspapers over commercial rights. The row was sparked when the Hartlepool Mail refused to sign a commercial agreement with the club which the newspaper considered to be unfair. The Mail’s photographers are not allowed into the stadium, and reporters, who are denied press access (although they have been reporting from the terraces).
The Northern Echo’s and the Hartlepool Mail have been banned from the Victoria Park ground as Hartlepool United is in dispute with the newspapers over commercial rights. The row was sparked when the Hartlepool Mail refused to sign a commercial agreement with the club which the newspaper considered to be unfair. The Mail’s photographers are not allowed into the stadium, and reporters, who are denied press access (although they have been reporting from the terraces). The Northern Echo was then banned for supplying the Mail with pictures of recent matches and refusing to give a commitment not to do so in the future.
The editor of The Northern Echo, Peter Barron, said: “I have twice written to the club, proposing a meeting so we can try to find a constructive way forward but, sadly, the offer has not even been acknowledged.