The Men of the Media

Martin Baron retired as executive editor of The Washington Post in February 2021, after spending eight years overseeing the paper’s print and digital news operations. In the course of his career, Baron has led newsrooms to 17 Pulitzer Prizes, including 10 awarded to the Post. His career in journalism has been recognised with numerous honours and awards, and he is the recipient of several honorary degrees.

Eric Beecher has had a long career in journalism, media and publishing. He was appointed as the youngest-ever editor of The Sydney Morning Herald and later as editor-in-chief of the Melbourne Herald. He then became an independent media owner, launching several media and publishing start-up companies. He is currently Chair of and the largest shareholder in Private Media, owner of several Australian news websites including Crikey. 

Alan Rusbridger was editor-in-chief of Guardian News & Media from 1995 to 2015. He launched The Guardian in the US and Australia as well as building a website that today attracts more than 100 million browsers a month. The paper’s coverage of phone-hacking led to the Leveson Inquiry into press standards and ethics in the United Kingdom. Alan is the author of Play It Again and Breaking News. 

Kim Williams is the current Chair of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and a composer. He was formerly the CEO of the Australian Film Commission, where he ran the TV production house Southern Star Group. In 1988 he was appointed foundation chairman of Film Finance Corporation Australia, and he chaired the Australian Copyright Agency from 2015 to 2021.