Michelle Stanistreet (born 1974) is an English trade unionist and journalist, now General Secretary of the
National Union of Journalists
The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) is a trade union for journalists in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was founded in 1907 and has 38,000 members. It is a member of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ).
Structure
There i ...
(NUJ). She is the first woman to hold the post her post at the NUJ – she was previously deputy secretary.
[NU]
NUJ General Secretary biography and information
/ref> She replaced in July 2011.[Roy Greenslade]
"Michelle Stanistreet: The NUJ will punch above its weight"
''The Guardian'' (blog), 25 April 2011.
Early life
Born and raised in Liverpool, the daughter of a police officer, she gained a scholarship to Merchant Taylors' School in Crosby, and graduated with a degree in English and History from Liverpool University
, mottoeng = These days of peace foster learning
, established = 1881 – University College Liverpool1884 – affiliated to the federal Victoria Universityhttp://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukla/2004/4 University of Manchester Act 200 ...
.
Journalism career
Stanistreet worked as a journalist for ten years at the ''Sunday Express
The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first published as a broadsheet i ...
'' newspaper as feature writer and books editor. She was elected the NUJ Mother of the Chapel at Express Newspapers
Northern & Shell (holding company name Northern and Shell Network Ltd) is a British publishing group, founded in December 1974 and owned since then by Richard Desmond. Formerly a publisher of pornographic magazines including '' Penthouse'' and ' ...
, almost immediately after Richard Desmond
Richard Clive Desmond (born 8 December 1951) is a British publisher, businessman and former pornographer.
According to the 2021 ''Sunday Times Rich List'', Desmond was the 107th richest person in the United Kingdom. He is the founder of North ...
took over in 2000 and campaigned successfully for recognition at the newspapers.[Donnacha DeLon]
Why I’m supporting Michelle Stanistreet
''The Revolution Will Be Streamed'' (blog), 21 April 2008 Under her leadership, the NUJ Chapel twice reported their own newspaper to 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 ...
–- in 2001 over coverage of asylum seekers
An asylum seeker is a person who leaves their country of residence, enters another country and applies for asylum (i.e., international protection) in that other country. An asylum seeker is an immigrant who has been forcibly displaced and mi ...
and, in 2004, over coverage of Gypsies
The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...
, unsuccessfully on both occasions.
NUJ positions
Stanistreet also served as the national representative for newspapers and agencies on the NUJ's ruling National Executive Committee (NEC). In 2006, she was elected vice-president of the NUJ and in 2007–08 served as the union's president. She was the first woman deputy general secretary, elected in 2008, and became the first woman in the NUJ's history to be elected as general secretary in April 2011.
Politics
In February 2013, in line with the NUJ, Stanistreet was among those who gave their support to the People's Assembly in a letter published by ''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' newspaper.[People's Assembly opening lette]
"People's Assembly Against Austerity"
''The Guardian'', 5 February 2013.
References
External links
NUJ’s first woman General Secretary speaks about role
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stanistreet, Michelle
1974 births
British journalists
General Secretaries of the National Union of Journalists
Living people
Members of the General Council of the Trades Union Congress
Presidents of the National Union of Journalists