The West Highland Free Press was founded in the Scottish Highlands in 1972 as a left-wing weekly newspaper, but with the principal objective of providing its immediate circulation area with the service which a local paper is expected to provide. It is based at Broadford on the Isle of Skye, covering the Isle of Skye, Wester Ross and the Outer Hebrides.
The paper’s priorities are summarised in the Gaelic slogan on its masthead: "An Tir, an Canan 'sna Daoine - The Land, the Language, the People". It is a slogan borrowed from the Highland Land League which, in the late 19th century, fought crucial battles to win security of tenure for crofters.
The land issue is at the heart of the Free Press’s politics. The paper perceives a fundamental conflict of interest in private landlordism (which persists to the present), and this is reflected in many of the most celebrated stories which it has reported.
The Free Press has also championed the cause of the Gaelic language, both by giving it political support and by publishing written Gaelic material.
The West Highland Free Press has a number of notable columnists, including Professor Donald MacLeod, former principal and leading theologian of the Free Church of Scotland College in Edinburgh, Angus Peter Campbell, the award-winning Gaelic writer and award-winning novelist Roger Hutchinson (writer). The paper's founding editor, Brian Wilson, has also become a regular contributor again since retiring from politics as a Labour MP and British government minister.
The Free Press has reported and campaigned on stories of major environmental importance, such as the construction of a private-enterprise tollbridge to Skye. It has also supported renewable energy though this has recently proved to be a controversial stance, particularly on the Isle of Lewis. Though generally supportive of the Labour Party, it was extremely critical of the 1997–2010 Labour government on issues such as crofting reform and the failure to deliver a Gaelic television channel.
The West Highland Free Press is available extensively within the West Highlands and Islands and in towns and cities throughout Scotland, each Friday. The full paper is now also available by subscription on the internet.
The newspaper recently won seven awards at the Highlands and Islands Media Awards; Newspaper of the Year, Website of the Year, Journalist of the Year, Feature Writer of the Year, Gaelic Columnist of the Year, Reporter of the Year and Photographer of the Year. All awards were presented for the year 2007 and are co-sponsored by Highlands and Islands Enterprise and drinks manufacturer Diageo. The newspaper repeated this success during 2008 and 2009 winning first five, and then four, major prizes at the Highlands and Islands Media Awards.
On 27 October 2009 the West Highland Free Press became the first employee-owned newspaper in the United Kingdom. The newspaper celebrated it's 40th Anniversary in April 2012. The newspaper's Managing Director, Paul Wood, is also a Board member with Co-operative Development Scotland, the Scottish Government subsidiary promoting employee-ownership, collaboration and mutualism within Scotland.
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