Nick Davies illustrates and explains the decline in newspaper news quality over the last 30 years.
It isn't a conspiracy, it's just an overwhelming commercial priority forcing less journalists to produce more stories. How can they do it? They copy them from the pre packaged Associated Press news feed, PR releases or copy from other newspapers and check nothing.
Does it matter? Yes, because special interests can feed the press packaged stories much more effectively than they could in the past when newspapers still had an investigative function. The classic example is the WMD story pushed by the US and GB governments to justify the invasion of Iraq.
Arguably these lies cost Tony Blair his job (which Davies doesn't say) so it seems that the truth still come out, albeit in a much less timely and reliable way. ( )

I'd suspected, of course, that most of what sadly passes for "headline news" right now is, in fact, a load of b*ll*cks. What I didn't know was why. Read this passionate, vital and implacably well-argued book, and you'll never trust a headline again. ( )

A coruscating crucifixion of modern British journalism. The chapter on the Daily Mail is chilling. The highest commendation of this work are the subsequent reviews - high praise through gritted teeth. Interesting that no-one able to land a killer blow on Davies' core thesis. ( )