Dermot Murnaghan of Sky News among City alumni to celebrate with staff and students.

Published (Updated )

Alumni, students and staff have celebrated the 40th anniversary of City's Department of Journalism at a party in London.

The event, at Drapers’ Hall, welcomed high-profile City graduates, including Sky News presenter Dermot Murnaghan, who hosted the evening, and BBC Economics Editor Kamal Ahmed.

The department was established in 1976 and is now one of the oldest and most respected in the UK.

Several well-known alumni were invited to speak about their experiences since graduating from City.

They included: Caroline Faraj (Vice President of Arabic Services, CNN); Helen Lewis (Deputy Editor, New Statesman); Kamal Ahmed (Economics Editor, BBC News); Anushka Asthana (Political Editor, the Guardian); Jane Martinson (Head of Media, the Guardian); Alex Graham (Chair, The Scott Trust); Sally Shelford (Editor, Loose Women).

Professor Suzanne Franks, Head of the Department of Journalism, said: “The department has a wonderful network of alumni working in the top media organisations around the world, and we were delighted to be able to welcome them back to celebrate with our current students, staff and friends of the university.

“We have an excellent track record for producing outstanding journalists and the 40th anniversary of journalism at City has given us the ideal opportunity to reflect on their achievements and the success of the department.

“The evening showed the comradery within our alumni community, and the industry as a whole, with former students from a huge range of platforms and organisations represented. I would like to send a big thank you to everyone who attended, including all of our graduate speakers.”

The Department of Journalism was originally set up to offer a postgraduate diploma in newspaper journalism, with just a small cohort of around a dozen students.

But over the years, the courses have expanded and the department has developed into a thriving hub which teaches almost 600 students annually, from BA to PhD level.

Professor Theo Farrell, Dean of the School of Arts and Social Sciences, said: “City is immensely proud of its journalism department. The 40th anniversary celebration provided a wonderful opportunity for the many generations who have studied and taught journalism at City to come together to recognise the achievements of this great department. In this era of fake news, the work of journalism colleagues has never been more vital.”

Gallery of photos from the 40th anniversary celebration with staff and students

https://flic.kr/p/QLgCYp

Journalism at 40 (Event)