Richard Wallace (journalist)

Richard Wallace (born 1961) was the editor of British newspaper the Daily Mirror until May 2012.

Early career

Wallace began his Fleet Street career working for the Daily Mail and The Sun.[1] In 1990 he joined the Daily Mirror.[2] During Piers Morgan's editorship of the paper he became show business editor,[2] before becoming head of news in 2000.[3] Notable among Wallace's scoops was the news that actor Ross Kemp was leaving the BBC soap opera EastEnders in favour of working for rival channel ITV.[4] He was also responsible for the creation of the gossip columnists The 3AM Girls.[4]

In 2002 he swapped jobs with the paper's New York editor, Andy Lines.[1] Ten months later, in 2003, he became deputy editor of the Sunday Mirror.[5]

Editor

Wallace was appointed editor of the Daily Mirror in 2004 on the dismissal of well-known editor Piers Morgan for publishing false images of British soldiers in Iraq.[6] The Daily Mirror was named Newspaper of The Year at the What the Papers Say Awards in December 2006.[7]

The Mirror was one of several newspapers which paid "substantial" damages for defamation for their December 2010 coverage of the arrest of Christopher Jefferies in connection with the Murder of Joanna Yeates; Jeffries subsequently being exonerated.[8][9] The publishers of the Mirror were later prosecuted for contempt of court for the way they had reported Jefferies' arrest,[10][11] and fined £50,000.[8] Their appeal against the fine was rejected by the Supreme Court. During the Leveson Inquiry, established by Prime Minister David Cameron to investigate the ethics and behaviour of the British media following the News of the World phone hacking affair,[12] Wallace described the newspaper's coverage of Jefferies's arrest as a "black mark" on his editing record.[13]

In May 2012, Wallace was sacked as editor of the Daily Mirror "with immediate effect".[14] after Trinity Mirror decided to merge the Daily & Sunday Mirror titles and slash editorial budgets.

Later career

In September 2012 he joined Simon Cowell's entertainment company Syco as a consultant.

In 2013 Cowell appointed him Syco's Executive Producer on the company's hit show America's Got Talent, broadcast on NBC.

In October 2017 Wallace was made Senior Vice President (TV & Production) for Syco.

Personal

He married long-time partner Tina Weaver, former Editor of the Sunday Mirror, in June 2016 at Aynhoe Park, Oxford.

References

1. Jessica Hodgson (21 May 2002). "Wallace and Lines swap jobs at the Mirror". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 October 2011.
2. "Media Guardian 100 : 61. Richard Wallace". The Guardian. 13 July 2009. Retrieved 11 October 2011.
3. "Wallace appointed Mirror head of news". The Guardian. 3 October 2000. Retrieved 11 October 2011.
4. "Media Guardian Top 100 (2004) : 44. Richard Wallace". The Guardian. 12 July 2004. Retrieved 11 October 2011.
5. Mirror names NY correspondents (27 May 2003). "Mirror names NY correspondents". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 October 2011.
6. "Daily Mirror unveils new editor". BBC News. 17 June 2004. Retrieved 17 September 2011.
7. "Mirror takes top What the Papers Say award". The Guardian. 15 December 2006. Retrieved 17 September 2011.
8. Halliday, Josh (29 July 2011). "Sun and Mirror fined for contempt of court in Christopher Jefferies articles". The Guardian. Guardian Media Group. Archived from the original on 12 January 2014. Retrieved 29 July 2011.
9. Greenslade, Roy (29 July 2011). "Eight newspapers pay libel damages to Christopher Jefferies". The Guardian. Guardian Media Group. Archived from the original on 15 December 2013. Retrieved 13 December 2011.
10. "Sun and Mirror in contempt case over Jo Yeates stories". BBC News. BBC. 12 May 2011. Archived from the original on 13 May 2011. Retrieved 12 May 2011.
11. "Sun and Mirror accused of Jo Yeates contempt". BBC News. BBC. 5 July 2011. Archived from the original on 6 July 2011. Retrieved 6 July 2011.
12. "Leveson Inquiry: Media vilified me, Christopher Jefferies says". BBC News. BBC. 28 November 2011. Archived from the original on 28 November 2011. Retrieved 28 November 2011.
13. "Wallace: Jefferies coverage is 'black mark on my record'". Press Gazette. Progressive Media Group. 16 January 2012. Archived from the original on 26 January 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2012.
14. "Daily Mirror and Sunday Mirror editors lose their jobs", BBC News, 30 May 2012