‘The media’, journalist, reporter, presenter, film-maker – all incredibly popular career choices. And therefore incredibly competitive. Whether you want to specialise in music, health, sport or politics … Whether your hero is Jeremy Paxman or Piers Morgan … Whether you see yourself as the guardian of the sword of truth or the editor of the Sun […]
Reflections on the phone-hacking scandal
Over the past couple of weeks I’ve been gripped by the continual and ever more shocking revelations in the phone-hacking scandal. It may be just because as a journalist by training, and a media consultant by profession, I’ve got a particular interest, but the implications of the fall-out could touch us all. A few random […]
Life as a tabloid hack
Once upon a time I worked as a reporter for a daily tabloid newspaper. Not one owned by Rupert Murdoch, but nevertheless a full-blown red-top. It was in the mid 90s and I didn’t last long, for reasons which will become clear. But I was there for long enough to get an insight into […]
Why should I care about lead times?
First things first: what is a lead time? A lead time is the time between when a newspaper or magazine is ‘put to bed’ and the time of its actual publication. And why should that matter to you? Well if you want to persuade a newspaper or magazine to cover your story it is […]
Why didn't the editor run my story? Here's a clue!
Work for any newspaper, magazine or broadcaster and you soon realise how desperate businesses and organisations are to get their opinions and news covered by the media. The media is overwhelmed with emails, press releases and phone calls. But every day, hundreds end up deleted or in the bin– a wasted opportunity, and a complete […]
Andy Coulson, me and our first job
Andy Coulson was already a reporter on the Evening Echo in Basildon when I arrived, way back in 1988. We were both products of the Westminster Press Editorial Training Course – five months of lessons in law, local government, shorthand – and, of course, learning how to write for newspapers. And for both of us, […]
Five things you should know about print journalists
A lot of people have never met a print journalist – and may never want to – but if one ever calls you and wants to interview you, it’s as well to have a bit of inside knowledge. So here are five things that might help you when speaking to a journalist. 1. If a journalist […]