What if you got a second chance at life? What if journalism is not about truth anymore? What if there were no journalists? And what if you could write a novel in 60 minutes? Just some of the questions asked of the 400+ people who attended Brighton Summit this year.
Hardeep Matharu, Editor-In-Chief at Byline Times, talking about the forces that shape us, asked the question about journalism no longer being truth? Our news agenda has been dominated by print, with publications deciding what we read about, but Byline Times was set up in response to tell us ‘What the papers don’t say’. It is funded by reader subscriptions and focuses not on the daily news, but on uncovering the truth behind the headlines.
But with the print media in decline, Matharu asked what is taking its place? Can we trust online news sources, when AI generated content is out there? What do we need to prepare for in our next government? What are the implications for those who write about world issues and want to travel? Can we trace where we are now in this country on debates about migration back to the Brexit vote? Just some of the questions Hardeep posed in her fascinating talk about what the forces are that shape us.
What if our lives had been different?
Former BBC Producer and Author, Sheela Banerjee asked us ‘what if your name told a story about empire, race and migration?’ I interviewed her about our family names (she’s my cousin!) and how different our lives would have been if we had grown up in India. Our names tell the story of colonialism. Our grandparent’s family name of Banerjee was changed by the British from Bandyopadhyay, forever stripping people of their true identity.
Children of immigrants grow up with names that feel like they do not fit. Sheela’s parents chose a name that was easy to pronounce so their daughter could fit in. Those names tell the story of what happens when people migrate and are forced to fit into a different culture. Sheela’s book ‘What’s In A Name?’ traces the stories of names from the Russian revolution, Greek Cypriots, Sri Lanka, Jamaica, and India. Each name tells a different story about our histories.
The question ‘What If’ led all the sessions, with the Founder of Scamp & Dude telling the audience her personal story about facing death. After surviving, she decided to put her second chance at life to good purpose, and founded Scamp & Dude, a brand that gives toys to children in hospitals, and scarves to women going through chemotherapy. Baroness Lola Young spoke about children in the care system. As the first black woman in the House of Lords, she regularly asks ‘what if?’ questions, imagining how things could be different if different decisions were made.
What is Brighton Summit?
An all-day event organised by Brighton Chamber and held at the Corn Exchange. The day brings together business leaders, business founders, charities, local government, community groups and creatives. Each year has a theme and the event brings speakers from all around the country.
This year there were keynotes from Jo Tutchener-Sharp, Baroness Lola Young and BBC Journalist Clive Myrie.
With workshops on how to write a novel in 60 minutes, music, improvisation, chocolate, and a tour round Brighton Dome.
What if there were no journalists?
Finishing the day, BBC journalist Clive Myrie asked, ‘What if there were no journalists?’ His talk covered watching Trevor McDonald on TV and realising that he wanted a career in journalism. He reminisced about his time at the University of Sussex in the 1980s, studying law, and how, on the day he came to visit, he walked to the seafront and decided it was where he wanted to study. His career led him to cover the 2008 financial crash and President Obama being elected.
He raised questions about the online world creating scepticism around vaccines and other key issues through the rise of social media. Without fact checkers, how do we know what is truth and what is not? Is this lack of trust in information leading to a mistrust of the news? How do we trust what we see and hear, and what if journalism no longer existed to tell us about world events?
Real life echoed his talk in the days after the Summit, with the BBC Director General and News CEO resigning following criticism that a Panorama documentary misled viewers by editing a speech by Donald Trump.
The event raised fascinating insights about the news, truth, careers in the media, and fact-checking. What if there is hope for more truth in future?
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