Today the Aussie Democrazy students were very lucky to have the opportunity to interview the Editor of the West Australian, Brett McCarthy. The boys asked questions about the role of a newspaper editor and the role of newspapers during an election.
AD: First of all, we’d really like to thank @brettmcarthy for speaking with the @aussiedemocrazy team at such a busy time!
AD: As the editor of a newspaper, do you ever struggle to fill an edition with news and opinion?
Never struggle to fill the newspaper it’s harder to decide what to leave out
AD: As the editor of a major paper, what are the challenges of deciding what goes in from a legal point of view?
Complicated defamation laws. Luckily we have great lawyers who sort most of that out for us.
AD: How do you find out what the community wants your newspaper to report on?
We do a lot of research. We also listen to our readers through letters, emails and phone calls.
AD: It’s near the election – do you have to be careful of bias when reporting on the campaign?
Yes but we try to be careful all the time. We are much more aware of it at the moment. We are trying to be fair.
AD: Does the election mean more work for newspaper staff? Does it have an effect on you?
A lot more work for our political reporters. The ones following the leaders are doing it tough but they’ll survive.
AD: Do people ever come to you not wanting stories run? How do you deal with that?
Yes all the time. I just judge the story on its merits. If it’s worth running we do. If not I politely decline.
AD: What kind of sources do your political reporters use – it is just material from the parties?
Not just the parties but a lot of material comes from them. Many other sources inside the public service and other areas.
AD: As an editor, do you see stuff about polticians that you’d like to run, but can’t?
I can’t really think of anything recently but it has happened in the past. We need to be able to prove it is true. Lawyers!
AD: What made you want to become the editor of a newspaper?
I started as a reporter straight from school. As I worked my way through the ranks I thought I’d enjoy the editor’s role.
AD: What are the skills that a good newspaper editor needs?
Ability to think about lots of different things at once. Good organisation, good people skills. Care about good journalism. Also need to be happy working strange hours.
AD: Is there an ‘equal time’ rule in the media when covering the parties?
There is no rule but we’ve tried to do that during this campaign. I think we’ve got it mostly fair.
AD: Do you think that print newspapers will be around in 10 years? Will that change things?
I think print will be around in 10 years but things will change. We will still deliver journalism but on different devices.
AD: What are some of the hobbies you enjoy when you’re not editing the paper?
Lots of time with my kids. I’m a member of Cottesloe Surf Club and I’m into ocean swimming. Tennis and golf as well.
We thank Brett for his time and wish him the best during this final week and a half of the election!
[...] support of my colleagues. While we had some great folks such as Lin Hatfield-Dods, Peter Veness, Brett McCarthy and Andrew Greene involved, I think we can make the program bigger and better in 2011, with a wider [...]