The total is in addition to the 13,000 people from the ITV Border region who took part in a separate postcard campaign aiming to save Lookaround, the local ITV news programme.

The regulator has stated that it received 2,500 individual postcards produced by the NUJ, BECTU and Unite. These postcards call on it to act to ensure that ITV continues to meet its PSB commitments and to avoid any attempts to top-slice the BBC licence fee.

The postcards were supplemented with a further 700 emails sent in to the regulator backing the unions' case.

NUJ General Secretary, Jeremy Dear, said: “It’s clear that the public doesn’t want to see cuts in local news. Investment in local TV journalism is vital for our democracy and our society. Ofcom must stand up to ITV’s proposed cutbacks.”

The message from supporters reads: “I am opposed to any form of 'top-slicing' the BBC licence fee, or any re-allocation of BBC income, commercial or otherwise.  I am opposed to the privatisation of Channel Four. I wish Ofcom to fulfil its statutory duty in terms of ITV by ensuring that ITV continues with, and expands upon, its local and regional news and non-news commitments including Childrens' TV production.

“I support the use of regulatory measures such as gifted allocation of digital spectrum to secure sufficient guarantees from ITV in return for strong enforceable obligations over PSB content, in line with submissions by the National Union of Journalists, BECTU and Unite. I urge you to come up with a proposal that not only maintains but also strengthens the provision of public service content across the UK.”

 18 July 2008