Sir David Nicholas, who has died aged 92, was a pioneering television journalist who became editor of ITN when ITV’s news provider was at the height of its popularity – and widely regarded as superior to its BBC rival. In 1977, the year in which he was promoted to the role, the report of Lord (Noel) Annan’s committee on the future of broadcasting declared: “We subscribe to the generally held view that ITN has the edge over BBC news.”
Nicholas’s enterprise was instrumental in helping the commercial TV news service achieve this position after it had started in 1955 with a mission to get away from the BBC’s “stuffy” presentation style. Live news events were his specialism. An early example during his time as deputy editor was the 1966 general election night results programme, which he produced after visiting the US to observe television coverage of the presidential election two years earlier. He was determined to be first with the results, constantly updating computer technology, and the clearest with analysis, which was ensured with Alastair Burnet as presenter, demonstrating his encyclopedic political knowledge and unflappability.
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