The Guardian·2026-02-11
Flashes of anger but Paul Dacre keeps his head before court cut-offPaul Dacre was “no shrinking violet” in the 27 years he edited the Daily Mail, he said in his witness statement to the high court in London this week. He had “captained a tough ship” in order to safeguard “the ‘patina’ and prestige that differentiated the Daily Mail from other titles, both the popular ones and the so-called quality newspapers”. Others have described the editor’s tenure, and the impact it had on the UK, differently. Widely regarded as “the most powerful print journalist in Britain” (Politico) until he stood down in 2021, to his critics Dacre was “the man who hated liberal Britain” (New Statesman), and even the country’s “most dangerous man” (Observer). This was the editor whom celebrities and politicians most feared, whose management diatribes were so notoriously foul-mouth
The Guardian·2026-02-11
Instagram CEO dismisses idea of social media addiction in landmark trialInstagram’s CEO dismissed the idea that users can be addicted to social media at a landmark California trial on Wednesday. “I think it’s important to differentiate between clinical addiction and problematic use,” Adam Mosseri said on the witness stand. Psychologists do not classify social media addiction as an official diagnosis. Researchers have documented the harmful consequences of compulsive use among young people, and lawmakers around the world are worried about its addictive potential. Mosseri is the first executive to testify in a series of trials in which hundreds of families and school districts have sued Meta, Snap, TikTok and YouTube, alleging the companies knowingly created addictive products that harm young people’s mental health. The initial trial, in Los Angeles, focuses on
The Guardian·2026-02-11
Washington Post editor acknowledges ‘genuine trauma’ over mass layoffsTop Washington Post editor Matt Murray acknowledged “a widespread sense of loss, of genuine trauma” in a contentious town hall meeting with staff on Wednesday after the company laid off nearly a third of its employees a week ago – though he expressed confidence that the Post was now on a path to success. “There’s no doubt that just the sheer depth of the cuts – and also, with that, the reality of what we face at the Post – has been a very hard thing to wrap our heads around and to grapple with,” Murray said, according to a recording of his remarks obtained by the Guardian. Murray, who joined the Post in 2024, said it was a “shocking discovery” for management to understand the scope of the financial problems the company is facing. But he said he did not want to “look backwards and litigate
The Guardian·2026-02-11
Mail titles kept using investigator after his conviction, court hearsA private investigator convicted of illegally obtaining secret information has said the Daily Mail and the Mail on Sunday remained his “best customers” after his conviction, the high court has heard. Steve Whittamore, who was convicted in 2005 and given a conditional discharge, said his activities for the publisher of the titles, Associated Newspapers Ltd (ANL), spanned from 1998 to 2007. In a written submission to the court, Whittamore said he and his network of other private investigators provided criminal records and the names and addresses attached to phone numbers, “blagged” personal data collected by deception and obtained itemised phone bills. “After my conviction, there were some titles who ceased to instruct me; however, some newspapers continued using my services despite this, an
