Showing posts with label Journalism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Journalism. Show all posts

Tuesday 3 September 2019

Surviving the Press-Gang: 70 Crazy Years in Journalism by Leslie Watkins

This book interested me as I do like to keep up with the latest news and are concerned where the media is heading (Especially in Trump's America.) So here is a look back at the golden age of journalism. Some great anecdotes and a snapshot of 1950's politics to now. I gave it 5 stars.

Leslie Watkins gives us a unique glimpse into his life and career as a journalist that started in the late 1940’s. Needless to say, but he knows how to write a story as he must have written hundreds of them over a career spanning 70 years. It is nice being taken back to a time where news had to be fact checked before being printed, although I was surprised that fake news was nothing new. But then making up a few letters allegedly send into the paper is a bit more innocent then the blatant twisting of facts we see these days. I could have done with a bit less of Mr Watkins own views on political events, but it is his book and not a newspaper. Everyone is entitled to his or her views; I just preferred his own story, career and especially the unusual characters in the industry. This is a timely book as most newspapers are struggling and the news mostly comes to us now via online media. A look at a world that is quickly disappearing, and an excellent read.