John McLellan (born February 1962) is a Scottish

newspaper journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...

, former

editor Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, photographic, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, orga ...

of ''

The Scotsman ''The Scotsman'' is a Scottish compact newspaper and daily news website headquartered in Edinburgh. First established as a radical political paper in 1817, it began daily publication in 1855 and remained a broadsheet until August 2004. Its par ...

'' (2009–2012),

Scottish Conservative Party The Scottish Conservative & Unionist Party ( gd, Pàrtaidh Tòraidheach na h-Alba, sco, Scots Tory an Unionist Pairty), often known simply as the Scottish Conservatives and colloquially as the Scottish Tories, is a centre-right political par ...

media chief (2012–2013) and was a Conservative City of Edinburgh councillor (2017-2022).

Education

McLellan was educated at

Hutchesons' Grammar School Hutchesons' Grammar School is a co-educational independent day school for pupils aged 3-18 in Glasgow, Scotland. It was founded as Hutchesons' Boys' Grammar School by George Hutcheson and Thomas Hutcheson in 1641 It is a selective school, m ...

(1974–1979) and studied BA

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

media studies Media studies is a discipline and field of study that deals with the content, history, and effects of various media; in particular, the mass media. Media Studies may draw on traditions from both the social sciences and the humanities, but mostly ...

(1980–1983) at

University of Stirling The University of Stirling (, gd, Oilthigh Shruighlea (abbreviated as Stir or Shruiglea, in post-nominals) is a public university in Stirling, Scotland, founded by royal charter in 1967. It is located in the Central Belt of Scotland, built w ...

and journalism ( NCTJ) at Preston Polytechnic (1983–1984).

Career

McLellan was sports editor of the ''

North-West Evening Mail ''The Mail'', known previously as the ''North-West Evening Mail'' (1987–2017), is a daily, local newspaper in the United Kingdom, printed every morning. It is based in Barrow-in-Furness. ''The Mail'' was founded as the ''North-Western Daily Ma ...

'' and Assistant Editor of '' The Journal'', Newcastle, before joining The Scotsman Publications in 1994 and had two spells editing the ''

Edinburgh Evening News The ''Edinburgh Evening News'' is a daily newspaper and website based in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was founded by John Wilson (1844–1909) and first published in 1873. It is printed daily, except on Sundays. It is owned by JPIMedia, which also ...

'' (1997–2002 and 2004–2009) and also edited ''

Scotland on Sunday ''Scotland on Sunday'' is a Scottish Sunday newspaper, published in Edinburgh by JPIMedia and consequently assuming the role of Sunday sister to its daily stablemate ''The Scotsman''. It was originally printed in broadsheet format but in 2013 ...

'' (2002–2004).

Johnston Press Johnston Press plc was a multimedia company founded in Falkirk, Scotland, in 1767. Its flagship titles included UK-national newspaper the '' i'', ''The Scotsman'', the ''Yorkshire Post'', the ''Falkirk Herald'', and Belfast's ''The News Letter'' ...

appointed McLellan as editor of ''The Scotsman'' on 20 February 2009 following the departure of Mike Gilson, and in May 2009 appointed editor-in-chief of The Scotsman Publications. He gave evidence to the

Leveson Inquiry The Leveson Inquiry was a judicial public inquiry into the culture, practices and ethics of the British press following the News International phone hacking scandal, chaired by Lord Justice Leveson, who was appointed in July 2011. A series of ...

on 18 January 2012. McLellan was dismissed by

on 12 April 2012 as editor of The Scotsman in a management restructuring process which involved the scrapping of the editor-in-chief role with the editors of each title reporting directly to the managing director of the Scottish Publishing Unit Andrew Richardson. He was replaced by Ian Stewart (journalist), who remained editor of its sister title Scotland on Sunday. However, McLellan has continued to write a political opinion column for The Scotsman. On 23 June 2012 McLellan was appointed director of communications of the

Scottish Conservatives The Scottish Conservative & Unionist Party ( gd, Pàrtaidh Tòraidheach na h-Alba, sco, Scots Tory an Unionist Pairty), often known simply as the Scottish Conservatives and colloquially as the Scottish Tories, is a centre-right political par ...

. Former Tory

spin doctor In public relations and politics, spin is a form of propaganda, achieved through knowingly providing a biased interpretation of an event or campaigning to influence public opinion about some organization or public figure. While traditional publi ...

Ramsay Jones was suspended during the previous year's party leadership elections. McLellan advised Scottish Tory leader

Ruth Davidson Ruth Elizabeth Davidson, Baroness Davidson of Lundin Links (born 10 November 1978), is a Scottish politician who served as Leader of the Scottish Conservative Party from 2011 to 2019 and Leader of the Scottish Conservative Party in the Scottish ...

on communications strategy, direction and content. On 28 June 2013 the

announced that McLellan had resigned his post as the party's communications director and would take up the role of director of the Scottish Newspaper Society in September. In the May 2017 Scottish local government elections McLellan was elected to the City of Edinburgh Council as a Conservative councillor, one of four councillors for the Craigentinny & Duddingston Ward. In May 2022 McLellan did not stand for re-election to the City of Edinburgh Council.

Other

He was a member of the

Press Complaints Commission The Press Complaints Commission (PCC) was a voluntary regulatory body for British printed newspapers and magazines, consisting of representatives of the major publishers. The PCC closed on Monday 8 September 2014, and was replaced by the Indep ...

(2008-2012), the

Defence, Press and Broadcasting Advisory Committee The Defence and Security Media Advisory Committee is a British advisory body established in 2015 which oversees a voluntary code which operates between the government departments which have responsibility for national security and the media. Histo ...

(2006–12) and was twice chair of the Scottish Newspaper Society's editors' committee. He was appointed

honorary professor Honorary titles (professor, reader, lecturer) in academia may be conferred on persons in recognition of contributions by a non-employee or by an employee beyond regular duties. This practice primarily exists in the UK and Germany, as well as in m ...

at the

in 2012 in a teaching and advisory role.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McLellan, John 1962 births People educated at Hutchesons' Grammar School Alumni of the University of Stirling Scottish journalists Scottish newspaper editors Living people The Scotsman people Scottish Conservative Party

Education

Career

Other

See also

References