Behind the Telegraph Shake-Up: Why Farage’s Exit Is About Money, Not Politics

Nigel Farage’s departure from the Daily Telegraph has sparked speculation that the newspaper’s new German owner, Axel Springer, is steering it away from its rightward drift. Yet those inside the paper suggest the real driver behind the changes is far more mundane: cost-cutting.

Farage had written columns for the Telegraph since 2016, most of them promoting the Brexit Party and, later, Reform UK, which he now leads, or accusing political rivals of being soft on immigration. For his contributions, the paper paid him around £4,000 a month, amounting to nearly half a million pounds over the past decade.

This week it emerged that Farage’s services were no longer required by Axel Springer, although sources close to the Reform UK leader insist that he resigned. The paper is also reported to be negotiating the exit of columnist Allison Pearson, who had previously praised what she called the “rough-diamond charisma” of far-right activist Tommy Robinson.

Together, the two departures fuelled rumours that Springer had called a halt to the Telegraph’s rightward shift and was returning the paper to its traditional role as a mainstream Conservative title. Some subscribers threatened on X to cancel their subscriptions, voicing unease over Springer’s pro-EU stance and the existence of its internal LGBTQ+ network.

“It Was Just Money”

While there are signs of a tonal shift away from some of the paper’s more provocative commentary, insiders say the political interpretation misses the main point. “This wasn’t politics,” one insider said. “It was just money.”

The Telegraph is the latest example of a wider trend across the media industry: newspapers still command trophy prices, such as the £575 million Springer paid to acquire the title in June, yet many can no longer afford to pay journalists. Announcing the cuts to staff, Carolin Hulshoff Pol, the new Chief Executive of Telegraph Media Group, said print sales were continuing to decline, search traffic was under pressure and artificial intelligence was transforming the industry.

More than 100 people, almost 20% of editorial and commercial staff, are reportedly facing redundancy before Christmas. The company has not confirmed the figures, but the sport and culture desks, long regarded as mainstays of Telegraph coverage, are expected to be hit harder than the comment section.

Several journalists have already announced their departures. Liam Halligan, who has written a well-regarded economics column for 27 years, drew both sympathy and claims of a possible “left turn” when he announced his exit on X. Fewer observers noted that Springer chief executive Mathias Döpfner is said to be an admirer of X owner Elon Musk, and reportedly encouraged him in his support for Germany’s far-right AfD party, as reported by the Telegraph itself.

Other departures include Lisa Markwell, head of long reads and a former editor of the Independent on Sunday, whose exit further undermines the idea that the cuts are ideologically driven.

Observers suggest that any perceived softening of the paper’s tone on migration may simply reflect the wider political climate, with both Reform UK and the American MAGA movement having seen better days. As one senior Telegraph journalist remarked, almost everyone at the paper remains a Brexiteer, with only one or two notable exceptions.

A Long Road to New Ownership

Staff had been anticipating cuts long before Springer’s takeover. The paper spent three years in ownership limbo after Lloyds Bank seized assets from its former owners, the Barclay family. Other prospective buyers, including RedBird IMI and the owners of the Daily Mail, were all expected to reduce costs, particularly as the sale price climbed to levels many considered detached from economic reality.

Media owners grappling with a business model battered by the internet and a decline in public trust have typically cut jobs gradually. Springer, however, having waited 22 years since its first offer for the Telegraph, appears unwilling to move slowly.

In June, Döpfner had lifted morale in the newsroom by outlining plans to use the Telegraph to break into the American market as a centre-right, pro-free speech challenger to the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times. His ambitions echoed those of Rupert Murdoch, who once described his newspapers as the protector of the conservative voice in the English-speaking world.

AI at the Heart of the Strategy

It has now emerged that Springer’s expansion plans rely heavily on artificial intelligence. Although details have yet to be disclosed, there is talk of using the technology to streamline content across Springer’s portfolio, which also includes Politico and Business Insider.

Critics noted that an official email jointly signed by Hulshoff Pol and Telegraph editor Chris Evans, announcing the job cuts alongside an ambition to transform the company “into a global, AI-powered premium media and intelligence business,” read as though it had been machine-generated.

While Farage is unlikely to struggle to find well-paid work elsewhere, the same cannot be said for the more than 100 journalists now facing the prospect of spending Christmas without a job.