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'It is now more than 30 years since Graham Perkin's tragically premature death, but his legacy lives on in every corner of the Australian media. Perkin was, without question, the country's greatest editor of the 20th century. In his nine years at the helm of The Age, he transformed a venerable but moribund rag into a paper regularly voted one of the world's ten best broadsheets, alongside such great titles as The Washington Post and The Times of London. He changed forever the way that the media looks at society, and the way that people relate to the media.
'In this insightful, vigorous biography, veteran investigative journalist and Walkley Award winner Ben Hills — who worked under Perkin's editorship for six years — chronicles the life and times of Australia's most influential newspaper editor, and the history of the newspaper to which he devoted his tremendous talents.
'From a little town in Victoria's dusty Mallee to the door of the Fairfax boardroom, from the twilight of the Menzies era to the death throes of the Whitlam government, from formulaic, moth-balled reportage to socially responsible investigative journalism, Breaking News paints a vivid picture of Graham Perkin's remarkable career. It is biography at its best, and the personality and energy of this big, bluff cyclone of a man jumps from the pages. Most of all, however, it is a portrait of media power, of the last of the great editors who, by the force of their convictions, made a difference to society — a breed for whom there is no place in today's corporate media conglomerates, with their focus on cost-cutting and the short-term bottom line.
'A cracking story in its own right, Breaking News is an engrossing read, not only for those who remember Perkin and the golden age of Australian newspapers, but also for everyone who reads the paper or watches the news today.' (From the publisher's website.)
Notes
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Epigraph: What a marvellous opportunity for attacking the devil. - W. T. Stead's letter accepting the editorship of the Darlington Northern Echo, 1871.
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Works about this Work
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Untitled
2010
single work
review
— Appears in: Bookseller + Publisher Magazine , May/June vol. 89 no. 8 2010; (p. 39)
— Review of Breaking News : The Golden Age of Graham Perkin 2010 single work biography -
Man of Paper, Mind of Steel: The Editor who Defined The Age
2010
single work
review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , June no. 322 2010; (p. 8-9)
— Review of Breaking News : The Golden Age of Graham Perkin 2010 single work biography -
Perkin, the Right Man for His Age
2010
single work
review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 29 May 2010; (p. 16-17)
— Review of Breaking News : The Golden Age of Graham Perkin 2010 single work biography -
Great Editor's Biography Recalls a Revolution That Kicked the Stuffing Out of Newspapers
2010
single work
column
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 22-23 May 2010; (p. 7) -
Lamentation for a Leader Lost
2010
single work
review
— Appears in: The Age , 15 May 2010; (p. 22)
— Review of Breaking News : The Golden Age of Graham Perkin 2010 single work biography
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Tribute to Editor Who Inspired a Newspaper's Golden Age
2010
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 8-9 May 2010; (p. 32-33)
— Review of Breaking News : The Golden Age of Graham Perkin 2010 single work biography -
Too Close to the Source of the Story
2010
single work
review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 15-16 May 2010; (p. 22)
— Review of Breaking News : The Golden Age of Graham Perkin 2010 single work biography -
Lamentation for a Leader Lost
2010
single work
review
— Appears in: The Age , 15 May 2010; (p. 22)
— Review of Breaking News : The Golden Age of Graham Perkin 2010 single work biography -
Perkin, the Right Man for His Age
2010
single work
review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 29 May 2010; (p. 16-17)
— Review of Breaking News : The Golden Age of Graham Perkin 2010 single work biography -
Man of Paper, Mind of Steel: The Editor who Defined The Age
2010
single work
review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , June no. 322 2010; (p. 8-9)
— Review of Breaking News : The Golden Age of Graham Perkin 2010 single work biography -
Great Editor's Biography Recalls a Revolution That Kicked the Stuffing Out of Newspapers
2010
single work
column
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 22-23 May 2010; (p. 7)
Awards
- 2010 shortlisted Western Australian Premier's Book Awards — Non-Fiction
- 2010 co-winner 'The Nib': CAL Waverley Library Award for Literature — The Alex Buzo Shortlist Prize
- 2010 shortlisted 'The Nib': CAL Waverley Library Award for Literature
- 2010 longlisted Walkley Award — Best Non-Fiction Book