Local Reporters First To Facebook Story

Journalists on a south-west newspaper were first to break the story of a massive beach party planned via Facebook.

Herald Express news reporter Jon Paul Hedge found out about the big plans purely by chance, according to Holdthefrontpage.co.uk.

Following the newspaper’s exclusive, the story was picked up by the BBC and ABC News among many others.

In the end the party did not go ahead but it still put Torbay on the news map for several days.

Crime reporter Paul James, who covered the story, admitted this week: “I thought this was a half-decent news item but I had no idea how big it would get.

“I never cease to be surprised by the whims of the press.”

As well as providing a talking point in the nationals, the story has sparked great interest locally among younger readers with the Herald Express’s online coverage receiving a significant number of comments