Central News, the Carlton broadcasting operation that takes in
cities as far afield as Nottingham, Birmingham, Oxford and Swindon, has
appointed a new editor for its southern region.
Ian Rumsey will replace Phil Carrodus on 2 January. Carrodus is moving
within the Carlton network to become news editor of West Country
Live.
Rumsey's brief at Central News South makes him head of the newsroom.
A senior editor will put out the programme day to day.
Based in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, Rumsey's patch stretches via Milton
Keynes and Oxford, west to Gloucester, Cheltenham and Hereford.
He said there would be challenges in getting to know the region in the
early days of 2002. 'It is not London; some things will be more
important and some things less. But there is no great mystery to good
journalism and TV news - court stories, features, consumer pieces,
investigations are the same the world over.'
Rumsey will also be looking for sports stories outside mainstream
interests, he said.
Programme editor of Carlton's London Tonight since 1996, Rumsey is
currently responsible for producing the flagship news show on his own
each day.
He has also been deputy head of news for London News Network for the
last two years.
Rumsey said he expects to develop close links with the editors of
Central News East, in the Nottingham area, and Central News West, which
includes Birmingham.
In July, Dan Barton moved from Nottingham to Birmingham before
relaunching the operation in the autumn. He was replaced in Nottingham
by Mike Blair.
Laurie Upshon, controller of news and operations for the entire Central
region, is responsible for all three areas.
Carlton said Central News as a whole constitutes the most-watched ITV
regional programming area.