The Catholic Herald is a London-based Roman Catholic monthly newspaper and starting December 2014 a magazine, published in the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and, formerly, the United States. It reports a total circulation of about 21,000 copies distributed to Roman Catholic parishes, wholesale outlets, and postal subscribers and describes itself as "a bold and influential voice in the church since 1888, standing up for traditional Catholic culture and values". The Catholic Herald was established as a weekly newspaper in 1888. It was first owned and edited by Derry-born Charles Diamond until his death in 1934. After his death the paper was bought by Ernest Vernor Miles, a recent convert to Roman Catholicism and head of the New Catholic Herald Ltd. Miles appointed Count Michael de la Bédoyère as editor, a post he held until 1962. De la Bédoyère's news editor was writer Douglas Hyde, also a convert who arrived from the Communist Daily Worker. De la Bédoyère almost went to prison for criticising what he saw as Churchill's appeasement of the "godless" Soviet Union. In the 1980s, when Peter Stanford became the editor, the publication openly supported left-wing politics in South America. Stephen Bates of The Guardian says that in the later 1990s and early 2000s under William Oddie, the publication moved to the right and published criticism of liberal bishops and Jesuits. Bates went on to say that editor Luke Coppen, installed in 2004, takes a more embracing stance towards Catholics of all political hues. During his tenure, Oddie lost a libel suit against Bates. More information...
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