WHAT'S NEXT: INNOVATIONS IN NEWSPAPERS

“No party can succeed in today’s world unless it’s also about wealth creation.”

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“Having a valet unpack your suitcase is very odd,” he says, shaking his head as if he didn’t enjoy the cosseting. “Old Labour used to talk about the working class and upper class, but staying with the royal family made me realise I’m definitely middle class.”

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“One of my views in politics is don’t make enemies deliberately because you end up making so many accidentally,” he muses.

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He is clear that Brown didn’t have the psychological equipment, or the smile, for the job. “He was never going to be user-friendly in the way that modern politics demands, but he could have won the election as a big, serious person.” Blair’s great fear is that the new Labour project died with his leadership.

Tony Blair: Exile from main street

Three years after he quit No 10, has the dust settled for Tony Blair? He talks candidly with Lesley White about Brown, Bush, Iraq and the world he has left behind

A brilliant interview, in today Sunday Times Magazine, worth to subscribe to all the pay walls of the world.

(Pictures by Harry Borden)

Sunday magazines are dying.

But the Sunday Times Magazine is alive.

The secret?

Strong and unique news stories.

Great journalism.

Period.

I just read this fantastic cover story in today’s edition.

What a great story!

The Sunday Times, to gain a better sense of the parallels between the Soviet and allied campaigns in Afghanistan, and consider what lessons can be drawn from the past, flew Brigadier Ed Butler to Moscow to exchange views and compare notes with Lieutenant-General Ruslan Aushev.

Butler was the former commander of 22 SAS and 16 Air Assault Brigade in Helmand, a soldier for 24 years, mostly with the SAS, that served in Afghanistan in 2001, 2002 and 2006. He now heads an international company trying to attract investment into impoverished regions.

Aushev, awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union, the former communist state’s highest military award, for his service in Afghanistan, Aushev, 55, spent four years and eight months in the country. He was seriously wounded, rose to regiment commander and is one of the war’s most respected veterans.

The conversation between these two war warriors is a fascinating lecture.

With great moments like this one:

“Karzai and his government should take responsibility for the country. The president should be given a strict ultimatum. He should state his aspirations for Afghanistan and plan for achieving them. The West should assist him, but remove him unless he has made progress within a certain time frame. Replacing his US bodyguards with Afghans would stir Karzai into action, added the Soviet general mischievously.”

So compelling that, a reader, Peter Armstrong, wrote this comment:

“This article should be read by all western leaders.”

This kind of first class journalism shows how you can make the difference when you invest in meaningful content.

Content matters.

Content, real content, great content.

And not bullshit!

(Picture by Dmitry Belyakov/Sunday Times Magazine)