Nick Davies Quotes

Powerful Nick Davies for Daily Growth

About Nick Davies

Nick Davies, born on December 26, 1949, in London, England, is a renowned British investigative journalist known for his groundbreaking work in uncovering political scandals and exposing corruption in the media. His career spans over five decades and includes significant contributions to journalism as both a reporter and an author. Davies' passion for journalism was ignited early, inspired by the powerful investigative work of his idol, Seymour Hersh. After studying History at the University of York, he joined The Guardian in 1972 as a trainee journalist. His first major assignment was covering the Miners' Strike of 1974, an experience that instilled in him a deep commitment to social justice and the power of investigative journalism. In 1983, Davies moved to The Observer, where he would spend the next 20 years, becoming one of the paper's leading journalists. His most significant work during this period was the exposure of the 'Murdoch Hack Scandal,' for which he was part of a team that won the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service in 2014. In 2008, Davies published "Flat Earth News," a critical examination of modern journalism and its tendency towards sensationalism and shallow reporting. His latest book, "Hack Attack: How Murdoch's Papers Bought Britain's Politics," published in 2014, delves deeper into the scandal that rocked British politics and journalism. Davies' work has been recognized with numerous awards, including three British Press Awards for Investigative Journalist of the Year and an Amnesty International Media Award. His relentless pursuit of truth, unwavering commitment to social justice, and critical insights into modern journalism make him a significant figure in the field.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"The job of journalism is to provide citizens with the information they need to be free and self-governing."

This quote emphasizes that the role of journalism is essential for a well-functioning democracy. By providing citizens with accurate, relevant, and timely information, journalists empower people to make informed decisions, exercise their rights, and participate effectively in governance. Essentially, this quote highlights that an informed citizenry is a vital component of a self-governing society, where the power lies with the people, not just the government.


"Journalists are expected to act as a check on power, not as an extension of it."

The quote emphasizes that journalists play a crucial role in society by serving as a safeguard against misuse of power, acting independently, and ensuring transparency rather than being mere tools or extensions of those in power. They hold a key position in upholding democracy, promoting accountability, and protecting the public interest.


"The function of the press is to serve the governed, not the governors."

This quote emphasizes the role of the media as a servant to the public rather than to those in power. It underscores the importance of journalism being unbiased and truthful, prioritizing the needs and interests of citizens over those who are in positions of authority. In essence, it highlights the democratic function of a free press, ensuring accountability, transparency, and fair representation.


"A good journalist asks questions that those in power don't want you to ask."

This quote emphasizes the role of a good journalist as an investigator and a watchdog, tasked with holding power structures accountable by asking probing questions that may be uncomfortable or inconvenient for those in positions of authority. In essence, it underscores the importance of journalism in upholding transparency and ensuring the public has access to essential information needed for informed decision-making.


"Truth is a luminous tranquility... a sudden breathless illumination, a shock, coming from far away yet near, outside us but what we truly are."

This quote by Nick Davies suggests that truth is not just factual accuracy but also an enlightening, profound, and transformative realization. He describes it as a "luminous tranquility" - a peaceful yet intense, illuminating moment of understanding, emanating from within oneself and beyond one's immediate surroundings. This insightful and concise interpretation implies that experiencing truth involves a sudden, breath-taking revelation that connects us deeply with our inner selves and the world around us.


In my case, I got hit a lot by bullies when I was a child, and so I naturally bristle against anybody who abuses power. And that seems to make me rather persistent when it comes to exposing the abuse of power.

- Nick Davies

Against, Abuse, Rather, Exposing

A trial deals with only a limited amount of information, considering only the evidence which is available and also admissible and which relates directly to the charges on the indictment.

- Nick Davies

Evidence, Which, Amount, Indictment

Julian Assange is self-consciously an individual. He thinks in his own way, primarily as a physicist, having studied pure maths and physics at university in Australia where he grew up.

- Nick Davies

Individual, Having, Studied, Physicist

I spent two years working on building sites, working on the railways as a guard and in a racing stable, exercising racehorses. I learnt to build relationships. The experience of not being stuck in some middle-class bubble taught me things that being at university hadn't.

- Nick Davies

Racing, Some, University, Sites

The death of the MG marks the end of one of the most perfect products of free enterprise, born out of the voracious will to succeed of one man and the burgeoning market for middle-class status symbols. The car first appeared as a souped-up Morris Oxford in 1923 when it won the Land's End Rally.

- Nick Davies

Death, Perfect, Enterprise, Voracious

In a film muddied by fictional detail, the new Spielberg production Fifth Estate's portrayal of the Guardian's work with Wikileaks is accurate in describing the running dispute between journalists who wanted to redact documents to make them safe and Julian Assange, who wanted no such restraint.

- Nick Davies

Production, Accurate, Fictional

Reporters have to use their imagination, really put themselves in the shoes of the person they want to interview.

- Nick Davies

Person, Use, Reporters, Interview

Notoriously, in 1975, Murdoch abused his position as a newspaper owner to support a plot that ousted the democratically elected prime minister of Australia, Gough Whitlam, who had dared to wander away from the mogul's path.

- Nick Davies

Newspaper, Away, Had, Wander

Back in the 1980s, the 'News of the World' had specialised in digging into the privacy of criminals. In the 1990s, enriched by the excavation of Princess Diana's volatile life, they had widened their work to mine the activities of any celebrity, any public figure.

- Nick Davies

Privacy, Celebrity, Back, Digging

Once, the world was full of mysteries, some of them frightening, some of them wonderful, some of them merely fascinating. Now, it can be a banal and predictable place, the tracks of daily life so well-beaten and defined, our culture awash with the imbecile obvious, our existence suffocating in safety. But mysteries remain.

- Nick Davies

Existence, Some, Suffocating, Defined

The effect of climate change is not simply to reduce rain during the summer months, but also to increase the number of torrential storms. When the rain falls that hard and fast, it cannot sink into the ground and go down to the aquifers.

- Nick Davies

Summer, Down, Number, Storms

The friends of tabloid newspapers often point out that their journalism exists only because millions of people pay money to read it.

- Nick Davies

Pay, Tabloid, Read, Journalism

The Murdoch-owned 'Sunday Times' has an appalling history of involvement in illegal activity. And it's because they're Sunday papers; they're trying to get scoops that the dailies haven't got.

- Nick Davies

History, Activity, Illegal, Appalling

I've learnt that your life is more interesting and fulfilling when you don't lead it in a straight line and you go off on zigzags. I've made it a rule that if life becomes too comfortable and easy, I'll disrupt it.

- Nick Davies

Line, Rule, Straight Line, Disrupt

The vast bulk of Murdoch's news output, including the huge majority of any falsehood and distortion, is simply the spontaneous product of his highly commercialised newsrooms. It sells.

- Nick Davies

News, Product, Including, Spontaneous

Something very worrying has been going on at Scotland Yard. We now know that in dealing with the phone-hacking affair at the 'News of the World,' they cut short their original inquiry; suppressed evidence; misled the public and the press; concealed information and broke the law. Why?

- Nick Davies

Yard, Been, Very, Affair

It's the tabloids, with their intense commercial need to get scoops to bring in readers, that run a regime of fear, where reporters are bullied, shouted at. That's where things go wrong.

- Nick Davies

Need, Commercial, Reporters, Bullied

It is an odd thing about newspapers that they live by exposure, yet they keep their own worlds concealed.

- Nick Davies

Own, About, Worlds, Concealed

You don't get shouted at at the 'Guardian.' Nobody bullies you at the paper; nobody tells you what to write. Now, I love working in that atmosphere; I am free to research and write what I want.

- Nick Davies

Love, Want, Atmosphere, Guardian

The U.S. dropped more high explosives on Vietnam than the Allies used on Germany and Japan together in the Second World War.

- Nick Davies

More, Japan, Germany, Allies

On first acquaintance, the mystery of the Mayans of Guatemala can seem simply bizarre, as it was when I first encountered Maximon the god.

- Nick Davies

Mystery, Seem, Bizarre, Encountered

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