A journalist has hit out at “vitriol, hatred and trolling” from readers after 28 years with a weekly newspaper.

Darren Burke has criticised the abuse of journalists in a column for the Doncaster Free Press in which he looked back on his career to date.

Darren joined the Free Press full-time on 4 July 1994 and has remained there ever since, working under six different editors and in four different offices.

In his regular ‘Don Your Way’ column, he remarked on the “immense changes” he had witnessed in the industry since then.

Darren at the start of his career and more recently

Darren wrote: “It’s not all been a barrel of laughs of course. There’s been the complaints, the angry voices not wanting light shone on their murky behaviour, the rise of vitriol, hatred and trolling via social media and the fact that being in a local newspaper as a badge of honour seems to have gone.

“There was a time when if someone’s story was published, proud relatives would rush out to buy ten copies.

“Now you’re more likely to get a message via Facebook or Twitter wishing you dead simply because you’ve written something they don’t like.”

Darren has previously spoken out against online abuse of regional press colleagues, revealing he had been called a “nonce”, a “c***” and had death wished upon him in a matter of weeks during 2019.

But, in his column, he added that newsrooms were “unique”places and that journalism had “formed a backdrop” to his life.

Darren wrote: “Lifelong friendships forged through the newsroom, ex-colleagues you can go for years without seeing but as soon as you meet up, it’s like you’ve never been away.

“Newsrooms are a unique place. With a unique sense of humour and unique sense of camaraderie. There’s been tears and tantrums but laughs and all human life too – and I’d be lost without being in one.

“Nearly 30 years is a long time in journalism – and it has certainly been an ever-changing but fun one too.”