# Financial Times Former Editor-in-Chief: Lionel Barber – Journalism, Curiosity, Power, & Telling the Truth Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-gstaad-guy-podcast-7345461/financial-times-former-editor-in-chief-lionel-barber-journalism-curiosity-power-telling-the-truth Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-gstaad-guy-podcast-7345461/financial-times-former-editor-in-chief-lionel-barber-journalism-curiosity-power-telling-the-truth.md Podcast: [The Gstaad Guy Podcast](https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-gstaad-guy-podcast-7345461) Published: 2026-01-29T15:43:00+00:00 Episode link: https://traffic.megaphone.fm/GGQ7109312617.mp3?updated=1772637519 Audio file: https://traffic.megaphone.fm/GGQ7109312617.mp3?updated=1772637519 Processing state: not_requested JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-gstaad-guy-podcast-7345461/episodes/financial-times-former-editor-in-chief-lionel-barber-journalism-curiosity-power-telling-the-truth Duration seconds: 3887 ## Resource The Gstaad Guy sits down with Lionel Barber, former editor of the Financial Times and author of "Gambling Man", to explore what journalism really is, and what it must remain in an age of speed, noise, and opinion. From his early days at The Sunday Times to leading one of the world’s most trusted news institutions, Lionel reflects on why great journalism begins with curiosity, not cynicism, and why asking the right questions matters more than having the loudest voice. The conversation traces his journey through foreign correspondence, writing about business in the 1980s, and navigating moments of doubt, reinvention, and regained confidence. Lionel unpacks the evolution from fast news to slow news, the discipline of knowing your reader, and the responsibility that comes with dealing with people in power. They discuss storytelling as a craft, finding your voice, balancing originality with expectation, and the tension between what audiences want to hear and what they need to know, especially in the age of social media. Filmed at the club at The Twenty Two in London. Chapters: (00:00) Intro ✨ (01:27) What Is Journalism? πŸ€” πŸ“° ✍🏻 (02:31) Journalism Requires Curiosity πŸ”πŸ§  (05:22) Writing About Business βœοΈβœπŸ»πŸ“Š (07:21) Business In The 80s πŸ•°οΈπŸ’Ό (10:15) Regaining Confidence πŸ’ͺ🏻✨ (12:11) Leaving The Sunday Times πŸšͺπŸ“° (13:08) The Financial Times πŸ“°πŸ’— (14:04) Becoming A Foreign Correspondent 🌍✈️ (16:20) Fast News vs. Slow News ⚑🐒 (17:03) Becoming A Leader In Digital News πŸ‘‘πŸ’» (19:01) β€œThe Pink Paper” πŸ’—πŸ“° (21:44) Knowing The Reader πŸ‘οΈπŸ‘₯ (23:36) Building An Institution πŸ›οΈπŸ§± (24:31) Personal Measure Of Success πŸ“βœ¨ (27:01) The Importance Of A Conversation Opener πŸ’¬πŸ”‘ (28:50) Dealing With People In Power πŸ›οΈβš–οΈ (33:53) Storytelling And Connecting With An Audience πŸ“–πŸ€πŸ» (37:58) Being Original vs. Answering To… ## Actions - request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-gstaad-guy-podcast-7345461/episodes/financial-times-former-editor-in-chief-lionel-barber-journalism-curiosity-power-telling-the-truth/transcription-requests` β€” Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode. - read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-gstaad-guy-podcast-7345461/financial-times-former-editor-in-chief-lionel-barber-journalism-curiosity-power-telling-the-truth.md` β€” Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource. A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed. ## Transcript Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.