Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee is the columnist of choice for opinion leaders, according to a survey commissioned by “information and networking club” Editorial Intelligence.
Opinion Leader Research polled 100 “opinion makers” in politics, government, business, the City, media, policy and non-profit organisations from its own panel.
Half of the respondents said that it was not important whether the commentators they read were in line with their own way of thinking.
Some 88 per cent said that they felt that good commentators were vital for keeping people loyal to a particular newspaper.
The survey features in the third issue of ei journal, which is published next Wednesday.
Contributors to the journal, which is sponsored by Sky News, include Dylan Jones, Georgina Henry, David Seymour and Adrian Monck.
One in ten nominated her in their top three commentators – she was followed by Mathew Parris, Andrew Rawnsley, Simon Jenkins and David Aaronovitch.
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