London's Frontline Club makes New York headlines

Describing it as "a haven and a forum for war reporters", today's New York Times publishes a complimentary feature on the Frontline Club in Paddington, London. It was founded in 2003 by Vaughan Smith, a Guards officer who later ran Frontline Television News, an agency for British cameramen who specialised in covering wars. Now the club is a popular way station for war correspondents, as well as a busy forum for film screenings and debates about current affairs and journalistic issues. Smith says: ''We saw friends get killed in the course of their work and we thought their work was undervalued and wanted to stimulate debate about the role of journalists." The NYT writer remarks: "That makes the Frontline Club very different from the London clubs of legend, where gentlemen sip port in the company of like-minded souls." He also notes that another journalistic haunt, the Groucho Club, "developed a notorious reputation for the number of drinks and scoops that were spilled within." I rather thought its notoriety sprang from other substances. (Via New York Times)