Opinion journalism is journalism that makes no claim of objectivity. Although distinguished from advocacy journalism in several ways, both forms feature a subjective viewpoint, usually with some social or political purpose. Common examples include newspaper columns, editorials, editorial cartoons, and punditry.^{[citation needed]}

Unlike advocacy journalism, opinion journalism has a reduced focus on detailed facts or research, and its perspective is often of a more personalized variety. Its product may be only one component of a generally objective news outlet, rather than the dominant feature of an entire publication or broadcast network.^{[citation needed]}

Richard Sambrook (born 24 April 1956) is Professor of Journalism and Director of Cardiff School of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies at Cardiff University. For 30 years, until February 2010, he was a BBC journalist and news executive, becoming successively Director of BBC Sport, BBC News and, latterly, Director of BBC World Service and Global News. From 2010 until 2012 he was Global Vice Chairman and Chief Content Officer of the Edelman public relations agency.

Sambrook was educated at Maidstone Technical High School, at the University of Reading (BA in English) and at Birkbeck College, University of London (MSc in politics). His career began in local newspapers in South Wales. He joined BBC Radio News as a sub-editor in 1980.

His time at the BBC was almost entirely in daily news. He was a programme editor, news editor and, later, Head of Newsgathering when the Corporation won a number of awards for its international news coverage. He merged radio and television news, and domestic and World Service newsgathering during this time, resulting in the world's largest broadcast news operation. He was acting Director of Sport in 2000, and became Director of News in 2001.

Martin Bashir (born 19 January 1963) is a British journalist, currently with NBC News as a contributor for its Dateline program, and an afternoon anchor for MSNBC, hosting Martin Bashir. He was previously an anchor for ABC's Nightline and is known for his interviews with Diana, Princess of Wales and controversy surrounding his interview and conflicting statements in his reports on singer Michael Jackson.

Bashir was born in Wandsworth, South London to parents of Pakistani Christian origin and grew up in Wandsworth. He was educated at the state comprehensive Wandsworth School for Boys and King Alfred's College of Higher Education, Winchester (since 2004 the University of Winchester), studying English and History from 1982–1985, and at King's College London. He is fluent in English, Urdu and Hindi. He identifies as a committed Christian.

He started work as a journalist in 1986. He worked for the BBC until 1999 on programmes including Songs of Praise, Public Eye and Panorama and then he joined ITV, working on special documentary programmes and features for Tonight with Trevor McDonald.