Walter Taplin (1910–1986) was editor of ''

The Spectator ''The Spectator'' is a weekly British magazine on politics, culture, and current affairs. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving weekly magazine in the world. It is owned by Frederick Barclay, who also owns ''The ...

'' between 1953 and 1954.

Life

Taplin was born and educated in

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

. He graduated at the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

and went straight into journalism. He also took the degree of Bachelor of Commerce at the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

. Taplin was on the staff of ''

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Econo ...

'' in 1939–40. He then worked during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

in the Ministry of Food and Central Statistical Office. From 1946, he was on the staff of ''The Spectator''. He also wrote much for the Information Research Department. In 1955, he had a temporary position at the BBC as a Talks Producer, then moved to the

Iron and Steel Board The Iron and Steel Board was a governmental body, originally established in 1946, to supervise the work and development of the United Kingdom iron and steel industry. It was reestablished in 1953 and was abolished in 1967. Iron and Steel Board 1 ...

, working as an economist to 1956. From 1957 to 1961, he was a Research Fellow of the

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 millio ...

, studying advertising. He then edited ''Accountancy'' (1961 to 1971) and ''Accounting and Business Research'' (1971 to 1975).

Bibliography

*''Advertising: A New Approach'' (1960) *''History of the British Steel Industry'' (1962)

References

1910 births 1986 deaths British journalists The Spectator editors Alumni of the University of Oxford {{UK-journalist-stub