When David Scott discovered his father was not who he thought he was, it
was much more than the discovery of a family secret. It was an
eye-opening revelation that explained the drive behind his rise to
newspaper and political prominence. The tough upbringing, the
disciplines of school and church life and the tears of a lonely child
set the scene for a life-long adventure which started on his local
newspaper when he was 17 and saw him rise to edit his first newspaper
ten years later. This story covers the 'golden years' for local
newspapers when advertising revenues and circulations boomed and many
monopolistic titles were the next best thing to a licence for printing
money. It didn't last. He has observed the sad decline of an industry he
cares about and outlines some of the mistakes which he believes will
result in the death of many regional newspapers.