Will Scotland's tabloids dare to back independence campaign?

The Record and the Sun both have the power to influence the referendum, says Julian Calvert

the-scottish-sun.jpg

FEW THINGS are most closely scrutinised by media watchers than The Sun’s headlines at election time. “Will the last person in Britain please turn out the lights” is often seen as crucial to the outcome of the 1992 UK General Election, while the gloating follow-up, “It was the Sun wot won it,” led to a host of imitators.

Less well known outside Scotland is the front page that appeared in the Scottish Sun in May 2011 when voters in the Scottish Parliament elections were told to “Keep Salm and Carry On”. To the surprise of very few, the SNP went on to win a thumping majority at Holyrood.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
TheConversation.com is a not-for-profit independent publication which sources articles from the academic and research community. The articles appearing here have been republished with the permission of TheConversation.com.