Unpaid wages, job cuts, shutdowns - an industry in crisis

COMMENT | I won’t ever forget my earliest days in journalism. I joined The Star in February 1996 and within a few weeks, the paper had officially overtaken New Straits Times as the top English paper, while new kids on the block The Sun was hot on the heels of the established frontrunners.

I remember in my third or fourth week in the newsroom, I stayed at work past 2am and I was the last one in the office. I strolled around taking the whole scene in. I was buzzing just to be a journalist. Those were heady days in the industry, in the economy and foolishly, I thought it would last forever.

Fast forward 23 years and things sure have changed. Both for better and for worse.

Yes, I am in a buzzing newsroom, but the vibe is different. Not just the goalposts, but the whole field of play has changed. Broadsheets, specialist magazines, the street evening edition – they all feel like part of history...