A former chief executive of Channel 4, Michael Grade will set out his thoughts on the media landscape in a year in which issues such as BBC governance, the future of press regulation and the implications of the digital revolution have kept the industry in the headlines.
Chairman of the BBC from 2004 to 2006 and executive chairman of ITV plc from 2007 to 2009, he was made a life peer in 2011 and is currently chairman of Pinewood and Shepperton studios.
With a long and varied experience in broadcasting and building audiences, he will address issues that are currently facing the media industry when the conference returns to London in November.
He will follow a distinguished list of SoE lecturers who have included Alexander Lebedev, Lord Hunt of Wirral, Paul Dacre, Gavin O’Reilly, Sir Christopher Meyer and Ben Bradlee of the Washington Post.
Based at the Tower Hotel, with sessions taking place on Monday 11 November and throughout the morning of Tuesday 12 November, the extensive programme, incorporating the Society of Editors Lecture and Gala Dinner, will be set against the backdrop of the River Thames, the city’s most iconic landmark, Tower Bridge and stunning views of the historic St Katharine Docks.
This year’s conference, themed ‘Freedom to Inform’ will include sessions on ways to pay for journalism, the relationship between the media and government, explore whether responsible journalists should deliver the news – not make it, and focus on the future of the Independent Press Standards Organisation.
Alongside this, a key discussion this year will be the relationship between the legal system and the media, as Keith Bristow, the director general of the new National Crime Agency will address delegates. He will be joined by Alex Marshall, the Chief Executive Officer of the Head of the College of Policing and Andy Trotter, the Chief Constable of British Transport Police and head of the Association of Chief Police Officers. Delegates will also be able to brief them on relationships between the police and media in the wake of the Leveson report.
Confirmed speakers include Steve Auckland, Chief Executive of Local World, David Price QC, David Dinsmore, editor of The Sun, Shami Chakrabarti, Director of human rights group Liberty and Kirsty Hughes, Chief Executive of Index on Censorship. They will be joined by a host of industry figures and media lawyers such as writer and broadcaster, Steve Hewlett, Raymond Snoddy, media lawyer Tony Jaffa, Trinity Mirror Legal Group Director Paul Vickers and John McLellan, director of the Scottish Newspaper Society.
Jonathan Grun, President of the Society of Editors and editor of the Press Association said: “With his unique experience in broadcasting, the Society has no doubt that Michael Grade’s lecture will address to all of the concerns that will be at the top of the media agenda this autumn.
“We will look forward to his hearing his take on the current media landscape and what the future holds for our industry.”
