From the second the Year 10 Journalism boys stepped into the lecture room, they knew Mr Marr was a unique speaker. Rather than the ordinary lectern with a mic attached, Mr Marr opted for a lone stool.

Once all the boys had filed in and taken their seats, Mr Marr started his lecture with a stunning, yet blunt, opening line:

‘Objectivity is impossible.’

Throughout the lecture, Mr Marr explored many aspects of journalism that he had uncovered over his decorated 45 years as a journalist. One of which was: ‘A tabloid can be the most poetic, vicious and most powerful part of journalism.’

Mr Marr drew comparisons to the recent news around the former Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce and how the media had attacked Mr Joyce with various headlines on the front page, referring to The Daily Telegraph and the Sunday Herald.

‘Politics is the most highly disputed area of journalism,’ Marr remarked.

‘Every journalist likes to think of themselves as the centre of politics, however no one can be. I believe that I am in the centre, however from other people’s perspectives I am not.’

Surprising his audience, Mr Marr expressed that he did not regard himself as a good journalist.

‘I rarely ever broke news stories,’ he noted.

Instead, Mr Marr explained he was a columnist who shared his opinion on current affairs, which he believes is just as important.

‘I don’t think breaking the story is the greatest thing, however the best thing is to understand the story,’ said Mr Marr.

After Mr Marr had finished his lecture, he asked people to ‘grill’ him. Mr Marr was met with tough questions, one of which was: ‘Have you ever regretted a story?’

Mr Marr responded with a surprising comment, noting that he often regrets writing most articles, because there will always be a mistake in any piece that you write.

‘You may make some sort of grammatical mistake, or you could not link things together correctly. However, the worst thing you can do is where you hurt someone as a result of you making a mistake.’

He added he does not believe that he has done this, but he has made some minor mistakes which he completely regrets to this day.

A final sentiment that Mr Marr left students with was what he believed was a requirement to being a successful journalist:

‘You need to be a good storyteller, and that will not change. The only way to explain the world is by telling stories.’

Arley Kekic (10/FL)