1. In reality, journalism has very little to do with a story that needs to be told. It has more to do with mass circulation, how many papers you will sell, or how much press coverage your story will get from the media. For this reason, every journalist is after the big scoop, that story which no one else has. However, no story, or even the source who got you that story, will stay secret. So the next thing you need to consider is the coverage you will give to the story. When doing this you have to stay on the right side of the libel laws. Too many journalists have used chequebook journalism instead of fact or not properly respected someone’s privacy and had their careers destroyed in court. Tabloid papers are generally more likely to take a risk than a broadsheet but they are all involved in ratings wars with each other so are hungry for the big story.
   
   
2. I started as a journalist on a very low-quality tabloid newspaper in the 1990s. I hated it, because I felt it had no principles: the editor checked every report from his journalist and he would change them to make them more sensational if necessary. The articles were often based on speculation rather than hard facts. The important thing was always to get the scoop before the other newspapers, and to send a paparazzo out with a camera to get the most salacious photo possible. Well, I stuck it for two years, but then I was lucky to get a job on a broadsheet. I’m still there, and I’m now a regular columnist, writing in depth about any medical stories in the news.

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