Having endured very similar, er, discussions, with people who don't properly understand the role of a media editor, I can sympathize with the JC's Stephen Pollard, who received a disturbing call from the Guardian's Harriet Sherwood:

Normally when a mainstream journalist calls it's for help, for a quote or for something specific. Not this time. Ms Sherwood rang me to have a go at me for publishing a piece by Geoffrey Alderman last week,  which began:

Few events - not even the execution of Osama bin Laden - have caused me greater pleasure in recent weeks than news of the death of the Italian so-called "peace activist" Vittorio Arrigoni.

Pretty arresting, indeed, and not something I would have written. But then the editor of a paper doesn't agree with everything in the paper. Ms Sherwood doesn't seem to realise that.

'Do you not think that to relish in the vicious death of someone at the hands of Hamas is something you had second thoughts about publishing?'

I pointed out that it's not my view but it's the view of the writer.

'But if you publish stuff in...More >>