Abstract
From the British Journalism Review of 10 years ago (vol. 24, issue no 4, 2013)
‘Is it really 24 years since Geoffrey Goodman wrote the leader for the first edition of this magazine? “The business is now subject to a contagious outbreak of squalid, banal, lazy and cowardly journalism whose only qualification is that it helps to make newspaper publishers (and some journalists) rich.” Not much change there then, though we might attach the word “some” to “publishers” and – thanks to the internet – reduce the number of wealthy journalists to “a few”’
– BJR editorial
‘In numerous editorials in its early days, the BJR argued that there could be only one response to a changing media landscape that threatened to dilute the trade and shred traditional values and ideals: courage combined with the excellence of journalism and journalists. Easy to say, far more difficult to effect. And – no sanctimony here – it a remains a central truth. There has never been, never will be, an easy way ahead, but the conviction at the core of this journal when it began remains unaltered.’
– A Geoffrey Goodman BJR editorial, quoted on his death in 2013
‘As I write, two phrases vie for the top spot in my teeth-gnashing list: “going forward” and “eye-watering”. The first… has no detectable meaning… Where else can they, or any of us, go? The second usually suggests an exceptionally large sum of money, but has no logical basis.’
– Michael Leapman, then literary editor of BJR, who died earlier this year
‘Newspapers are dedicated to disclosure, and the more of it the better. They see the intelligence community as class enemies and believe that if you pay homage to “the realm”, then you probably went to a public school, belong to a proper London club and do not trust the working class.’
– Phillip Knightley of the old Sunday Times Insight team