Abstract
From the British Journalism Review of 10 years ago (vol. 13, issue no 3, 2002)
‘Away from the public eye, a number of senior Fleet Street figures are considering how best the press can come to its own rescue — a plan infinitely preferable to Parliament becoming involved in an across-the-board wash and brush up for politics and media combined… If the pollsters have it right, only 20 per cent of the people trust the written press, a smaller proportion than in any other European country. It is… an essential part of a journalist's duty to inform readers accurately, whether or not that suits the prejudices and policies of his proprietor, editor or even those same readers. Failure to give fair and accurate reports of politics will simply encourage a government… to excesses of news management and help to push its own communications inadequacies into the sidelines of the debate.’
— BJR editorial
‘In signed and unsigned editorials over the years I have argued that the response to charges of this kind [then Party chairman Charles Clarke's accusation of mendacious campaigning against the government by the media] has to come from the courage of journalists themselves to stand up and be counted. There can never be an easy way out of that dilemma and all journalists should realise that any government legislation concerning journalism will not be an ally in the critical battle for the integrity, decency and quality of our trade.’
— Geoffrey Goodman, retiring after almost 14 years as editor of the BJR
‘As for [Rupert] Murdoch, the nearer to the grave he seems to get, the faster he seems to go, as if in some way he can defy the grim reaper. But some day, you know, he will [die] and I believe his group will unravel pretty quickly. I mean, television stations, satellite TV, that will go on, but newspapers need love, they need one man's proprietorial love, which he [Murdoch] understood in the early years.’
— Paul Dacre, interviewed on the tenth anniversary of his Daily Mail editorship by Bill Hagerty
‘When a newspaper is profitable — as many are — cutting editorial costs can briskly enhance its return on capital. This rarely harms sales immediately, which to some folk proves that it never will… Newspaper managements often don't find out until too late…’
— Bruce Page, former editor of New Statesman, on financial scandals and the media