The Frontline Club is a media club and

registered charity A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, Religion, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definitio ...

created by Vaughan and Pranvera Smith, located near

Paddington Station Paddington, also known as London Paddington, is a London station group, London railway station and London Underground station complex, located on Praed Street in the Paddington area. The site has been the London terminus of services provided by ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. With a strong emphasis on conflict reporting, it aims to champion independent

journalism Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the "news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree of accuracy. The word, a noun, applies to the journ ...

, provide an effective platform from which to support diversity and professionalism in the media, promote safe practice, and encourage both

freedom of the press Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the fundamental principle that communication and expression through various media, including printed and electronic Media (communication), media, especially publication, published materials, shoul ...

and

freedom of expression Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The rights, right to freedom of expression has been r ...

worldwide. Since opening its doors in 2003, Frontline Club has hosted over 150 events a year. Discussions, held most weekday evenings, are broadcast live. Past participants include John Simpson,

Robert Fisk Robert William Fisk (12 July 194630 October 2020) was an English writer and journalist. He was critical of United States foreign policy in the Middle East, and the Israeli government's treatment of Palestinians. As an international correspo ...

Jeremy Paxman Jeremy Dickson Paxman (born 11 May 1950) is an English former broadcaster, journalist and author, born in Yorkshire. Born in Leeds, Paxman was educated at Malvern College and St Catharine's College, Cambridge, where he edited the undergraduate ...

, Tim Hetherington, Nick Robinson, David Aaronovitch,

Alan Rusbridger Alan Charles Rusbridger (born 29 December 1953) is a British journalist and editor of ''Prospect (magazine), Prospect'' magazine. He was formerly editor-in-chief of ''The Guardian'' and then principal of Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford. Rusbridger ...

, Jeremy Bowen, Louis Theroux, Gillian Tett, Christina Lamb,

Julian Assange Julian Paul Assange ( ; Hawkins; born 3 July 1971) is an Australian editor, publisher, and activist who founded WikiLeaks in 2006. He came to international attention in 2010 after WikiLeaks published a series of News leak, leaks from Chels ...

, Jon Lee Anderson the late

Benazir Bhutto Benazir Bhutto (21 June 1953 – 27 December 2007) was a Pakistani politician who served as the 11th prime minister of Pakistan from 1988 to 1990, and again from 1993 to 1996. She was also the first woman elected to head a democratic governmen ...

, the late Boris Berezovsky, the late

Alexander Litvinenko Alexander Valterovich Litvinenko (30 August 1962 ( at WebCite) – 23 November 2006) was a British-naturalised Russian defector and former officer of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) who specialised in tackling organized crime, ...

, and his widow, Marina Litvinenko. The club's restaurant has been taken over by Santa Maria's pizzeria group. The club also hosts film and documentary screenings and organises training and workshops in such skills as camera operation and

film editing Film editing is both a creative and a technical part of the post-production process of filmmaking. The term is derived from the traditional process of working with film stock, film which increasingly involves the use Digital cinema, of digital ...

. In May 2011, broadcaster Louis Theroux said in an interview with the ''

Evening Standard The ''London Standard'', formerly the ''Evening Standard'' (1904–2024) and originally ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), is a long-established regional newspaper published weekly and distributed free newspaper, free of charge in London, Engl ...

'' that the Frontline Club was his favourite London club.

History

The Frontline Club opened in 2003. It was founded by surviving members of Frontline News TV, a cooperative of freelance cameramen formed during the chaos of the Romanian revolution in 1989. It specialized in war reporting for television. Vaughan Smith, one of two surviving founders of Frontline News TV, turned the operation into a club, offering a meeting place for those who believe in independent journalism, as well as to honour dead colleagues. It also aims to lobby for better support for the freelance journalistic community. The clubroom has a display of relics drawn from the history of war reporting, curated by Pranvera Smith. Cabinets show personal items, some with shell still embedded, that have stopped a bullet and saved a journalist's life. Pranvera and Vaughan asked John G. Morris to choose the Pictures of War and Protest that now hang at The Frontline Club. These are some of the most iconic war photos of the 20th century.
''“The photographs have a bold purpose: they ask questions that demand answers. They show history at its worst—and occasionally at its best. Many if not most of these pictures were taken under fire. Those who took them were prepared for the ultimate sacrifice because they hoped that their pictures would make a difference. They believed that if enough people could only see the true horror of war, there would somehow come an end to war itself. Several of them paid the full price. As we know, their hopes have been betrayed, for war continues every day. The Great Frontline Photos, Pictures of War and Protest exhibition stands as testament to those who tried, and as memorial to those who died—on their chosen assignment.”'' John G. Morris In December 2010 Vaughan and Pranvera offered

WikiLeaks WikiLeaks () is a non-profit media organisation and publisher of leaked documents. It is funded by donations and media partnerships. It has published classified documents and other media provided by anonymous sources. It was founded in 2006 by ...

their private home, Ellingham Hall, in Norfolk as an address for bail. Assange had been staying at the club for two months. In 2019 the club launched Frontline Freelance Register for freelance journalists and reporters operating in war zones to help them with issues related to welfare, digital security and insurance. The register states on their website "The Frontline Freelance Register" (FFR) is open to international freelance journalists who are exposed to risk in their work and who adhere to our Code of Conduct. We aim to provide our members with representation and a sense of community."

References

External links

*
Frontline Club social network
*

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20080905193650/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/food_and_drink/giles_coren/article2133749.ece Frontline Club restaurant

Giles Coren Giles Robin Patrick Coren (born 29 July 1969) is a British columnist, food writer, and television and radio presenter. He has been a restaurant critic for ''The Times'' newspaper since 2002, and was named Food and Drink Writer of the Year at th ...

's review in ''The Times''
On Assignment in Kosovo, ''Telegraph Magazine''
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