John Kay (journalist)

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John Kay (born 1944) is a British journalist who worked for The Sun newspaper for several decades.

Educated at St Peter's School, York public school,[1] Kay worked for The Sun newspaper from 1974, initially as a general reporter, then as industrial editor.[1] He was appointed the publication's chief reporter in 1990. Twice named 'Reporter of the Year' in the British Press Awards, a Press Gazette feature in November 2005 identified him as the sixteenth most influential British journalist since the war.[2]

It was reported in November 2008 that Kay had been persuaded to continue working on The Sun past retirement on a full-time freelance basis but on the same salary as before.[3]

In February 2012, Kay was reported to be one of eight people arrested as part of the Operation Elveden investigation into alleged bribes to police and civil servants.[4] Kay was cleared at the Old Bailey in March 2015 of paying a total of £100,000 over a decade to a Ministry of Defence member of staff for assistance on stories relating to the army.[5] The Sun though, did pay the money to his source, Bettina Jordan-Barber, who was jailed for 12 months in January for misconduct in public office.[6] Kay has now left The Sun and retired.[7]

In 1977 Kay was convicted of the manslaughter of his wife, on the grounds of diminished responsibility.[1]

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 Peter Chippindale and Chris Horrie Stick It Up Your Punter!: The Uncut Story of the "Sun" Newspaper, Pocket Books, 1999, p.69-71
  2. "Press Gazette names top forty journalists of the modern era", Press Gazette, 25 November 2005. Retrieved 13 March 2008.
  3. 'Axegrinder' "Sun chief reporter John Kay proves that some journalists ARE indispensable", Press Gazette (blog), 27 November 2008
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  5. Lisa O'Carroll "Four senior Sun journalists acquitted over payments to officials", The Guardian, 20 March 2015
  6. Lisa O'Carroll "MoD 'mole' Bettina Jordan-Barber jailed over Sun leaks", The Guardian, 20 March 2015
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