Had a Facebook conversation yesterday with a retired Telegraph journalist who was telling me that he'd never buy or read the Mail, but that it was "Too late now but I've always believed the pity is that the left, at any rate since the Daily Herald of my childhood, has not had its own Mail (ie good writing, as the Mail undoubtedly has, professionalism and a heart)"

He cited the Stephen Lawrence case, of course. I accused him of Omerta and pointed out that only 25% of people surveyed found journalists trustworthy... That's about the same as estate agents.

And that's the problem. Other journalists (print and TV), bereft of moral compass and probably none too bright, will allow the Mail to set the news agenda.

In my youth I (seriously) fancied going into journalism as a career. I loved to write, was interested in news and everything else, and viewed the job of journalist as important, creative, and even glamorous.

How deluded I was.

Last edited by Abernathy on Mon Feb 12, 2018 2:16 pm, edited 1 time in total.

"The opportunity to serve our country. That is all we ask." John Smith, Leader of the Labour Party, 10 May 1994.

I will say my few years working for (very) small scale B2B/local press were a lot of fun. It might have only been a piece about a minor row between market traders and the local council, but seeing my first byline in print was a huge buzz, a kind of which no job since has really come close to.

But at one point, it came down to a choice of promotion to Production Manager of a few magazines or playing the Manchester toilet circuit with my band in the vague hope something happened.

It didn't, of course, but no regrets. I'm not sure the low pay/long hours part of the journalism gig would have been much fun as I head towards 40. And perhaps once I realised I wasn't going to be the Man United correspondent for the Manchester Evening News, my heart wasn't in it for the long haul.

"Highlander was a documentary and the events happened in real time" - Master Shake

Sometimes think it would be fun to have the job of making up stupid stuff to put in moronic magazines like Chat or Take a Break, you know of the “I came home to find my husband putting the hoover nozzle up his bottom” or “my cat suddenly started speaking German” type of thing