BBC Scotland announces new head of news
Howard Simpson will succeed Gary Thompson, who is leaving later in the summer after nearly a decade in the role.
Simpson (below) is currently head of news content at BBC Scotland and has been with the broadcaster since 2017, when he joined BBC News Scotland as the department's news editor.
(Image: BBC Scotland) During this time, he was responsible for running the news desk at Pacific Quay, before becoming newsgathering editor where he managed reporters, correspondents and producers across Scotland.
He has been the head of news content since 2023.
READ MORE: Ben & Jerry's co-founder arrested after Gaza protest at US Capitol
Before joining the BBC, Simpson was editor of STV News and Sport and was responsible for News at Six, Scotland Tonight and the channel's live football programmes.
Simpson has nearly two decades' of experience, during which time he has led coverage of the 2014 independence referendum, the Covid-19 pandemic, a General Election and Holyrood campaign and the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
Hayley Valentine, BBC Scotland director, said: "Over many years Howard has proved to be an outstanding leader of teams who've covered countless major stories in Scotland, delivered the highest quality programming, and introduced new services for audiences.
"I'm excited to be working with him to continue delivering the best journalism and finding new and innovative ways to serve all our audiences.
"His creativity, brilliant news judgement, and enthusiastic and skilled leadership, will be vital as we continue to meet our audiences' expectations to provide impartial, informative, and insightful journalism."
Simpson said: "It's a great honour to be appointed as head of news and current affairs and to lead all the fantastic teams across the nation.
"I'm looking forward to working with my colleagues in news and the executive team as we evolve the production and delivery of our news services in the ever-changing digital age."
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