Former Independent on Sunday and New Statesman editor Peter Wilby has been given a suspended sentence for viewing child abuse online.
The 78-year-old had 167 indecent images of children on his computer, according to the National Crime Agency.
When interviewed by police, Wilby admitted having viewed abuse material since the 90s and said he had a sexual interest in children.
Having worked as an education correspondent for various newspapers, Wilby joined The Independent on Sunday in 1990 and went on to become editor.
He was also the editor of the New Statesman from 1998 to 2005.
He has since written various columns for publications including The Guardian, with work published as recently as November last year.
Wilby was charged with three counts of making indecent images of children to which he later pleaded guilty, the NCA said.
Investigators said he had been accessing the material online from his home in Essex.
At Chelmsford Crown Court, Essex, on Friday, he was sentenced to ten months in prison, suspended for two years.
He is also required to undertake 40 hours rehabilitation, is subject to a ten-year sexual harm prevention order and was placed on the sex offenders’ register for five years.
Adam Sprague, operations manager at the National Crime Agency, said: “The material accessed by Wilby and recovered from his computer showed real children being cruelly and sexually abused.
“He was viewing this content while working as the editor of prominent national news outlets, a role in which he was entrusted to form the news agenda for the British public. A trust which he has greatly betrayed.
“While there is a global demand for this material, children will continue to be abused. The NCA is committed to tackling child sexual abuse in all its forms, to disrupt offenders and protect children.”
The New Statesman said in a statement following the sentencing: “On 18 August it was reported that Peter Wilby, a former editor of the New Statesman, was convicted after he admitted viewing images of child sexual abuse. He was given a ten-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, at Chelmsford Crown Court.
“The New Statesman staff and management had no knowledge of Wilby’s arrest or charges before they were reported yesterday, and are shocked and appalled to learn of these horrifying crimes.
“Wilby, 78, was New Statesman editor from 1998 to 2005, and remained a contributor.”
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