Jim Waterson

Jim Waterson is the editor of London Centric, a local news outlet that publishes original boots-on-the-ground investigative reporting about the powerful people who shape modern London. It’s entirely subscriber-funded and profitable, with thousands of readers paying to support its work. Stories include tracking down the man filling London with tax-evading snail farms, uncovering the people behind the racist TikTok accounts talking the UK capital down, and hunting the urban foxes that have set up home on the roof of Google’s HQ.

Waterson left his job as media editor of The Guardian to launch the site in late 2024. London Centric publishes a twice-weekly newsletter and on social platforms. It has broken dozens of stories that have been followed up by national newspapers and nominated for investigative journalism awards. London Centric is also an experiment in building a news operation with traditional values that has more in common with the creator economy – which also means that, in addition to his role as editor, Waterson is chief reporter, subeditor, accountant, and credit card payments manager.