Feels very timely, this … because I published a story this week that was clearly in the public interest. It raised important safeguarding questions relating to a girls’ school. Cue accusations that my reporting could cause an individual to take his own life. With no recognition that journalists don’t create stories like this. The actions of those involved do. It’s not the first time this has happened. Nor, I suspect, will it be the last. Of course journalists have a duty to report fairly and accurately. But that doesn’t mean avoiding legitimate public-interest stories because someone might threaten to harm themselves. A free press depends on journalists being able to report matters of public interest - without being intimidated into silence. Whether that pressure comes through legal threats or emotional manipulation, it needs to be challenged.