The accolade served as the grand finale at the Society of Editor’s highly prestigious Future of News conference
Last night, Tony Gallagher, the editor of The Times, was presented with a fellowship award for outstanding contribution to journalism by the Society of Editors.
Gallagher is one of only a handful of journalists that has held the editorship of several national titles. He spent five years as editor of The Daily Telegraph, was editor-in-chief of The Sun, plus deputy editor of The Times and the Daily Mail.
Presenting the award, Ian MacGregor, chairman of the Society of Editors and emeritus editor at The Telegraph said: “In all those roles, Tony has displayed incredible commitment to his work, a deep passion for providing readers with what they want, a strong, unerring belief in the importance of freedom of expression, and a ‘’never-be-beaten‘’ attitude.
“He is also known for his exceptional judgment, both of stories and people. I cannot think of a better role model than the recipient of today’s Society of Editors fellowship award, Tony Gallagher.”
The high calibre conference, which brought together more than 200 senior editors and news leaders from across all platforms, was a day-long illustration of the importance of quality trusted journalism.
The day also saw the secretary of state for culture, media and sport Lisa Nandy MP announce the government’s Local Media Strategy, the unveiling of a new policing and media charter, a video message from the son of jailed Hong Kong news publisher Jimmy Lai, plus panels on journalism’s role in culture, politics and war reporting.
Anthony Loyd, The Times’ special correspondent, shared his story of being accused of anti-Turkish propaganda in Syria to demonstrate the power of misinformation to undermine the truth in society.
“Disinformation has always been around… what’s changed has been the depth and breadth”, he said, later adding: “Left to its own devices… it can lead to being threatened with jail in a major transport hub… after doing nothing but journalism.”
Loyd also praised AI’s role in helping journalists report on many leading global stories at the moment, while also highlighting the risks AI carries in the fight against misinformation: “AI cuts both ways — it’s the necessity of the moment. Just as someone can fake an image with AI, there are lots of ways of proving it’s fake.”
Earlier on, president of the Society of Editors and Sky News director of newsgathering and operations Sarah Whitehead opened the conference by emphasising the vital role journalists have in holding power to account in society: “Seeking facts, providing context and asking critical questions… they might not like it — they may use everything in their power to stop us — but that is what we do.”
She continued: “Our stories are what connect us with our audience and why people turn to our news organisations. We should continue to champion and celebrate that storytelling whenever we can.”
Read full coverage of the day’s events on the Society of Editors website.
