“Journalism is the absolute backbone of the BBC,” he said. “Not to say that we are the best in the world, it is what we aim to be.”

With an uncertain future for all media outlets, he stressed the importance of keeping up to date with the evolution of modern journalism.

“Standing still would mean inevitable decline,” he said. “Technology changes all the time and you must change to meet it, but your values remain the same.”

He described the changes that he has encountered in his years in the BBC, and how the corporation has adapted to the digital age.

“The first thing that hit me when I first walked into the newsroom was the noise,” he said. “Typewriters were ten to the dozen.

“The whole thing is now not just two television broadcasters (BBC and ITV), it is now a landscape of information providers.”

He placed reach and communication at the forefront of the BBC’s duty to its followers, as he expressed the importance of retaining the audience’s trust in the corporation.

“The BBC is seen as the most impartial broadcaster by some margin,” he said.

Journalism Week "a success"

During the Journalism Week, students have heard from number of journalists working across a range of mediums such as print, television, radio and online.

Dozens of students and trainee journalists have taken part in Journalism Week. Most thought the speakers had a positive message about the media industry and gained much from listening to all the different opinions expressed. We interviewed a handful. Elouise Armstrong, 20, an undergraduate television student, said: “It’s been up and down but most speakers were really good.”

Terrimarie McKeown, 25, an MA journalism student, thought the whole event “brilliant”. She added: “It’s been much better than last year. Not that last year wasn’t good, mind you! It gets you motivated again when people come in. It helps to focus your mind. I actually found Christa Ackroyd really helpful, she had really good advice. The speakers pushed to the front how important the internet is. I can see how important it is the get involved with the likes of Twitter.”

Tim Hood, a 26-year-old journalism undergraduate, found the week wide ranging. He said: “Everyone who has spoken has touched on every aspect of modern journalism available to them. Inspiration has been key this week. The main thing is that they have given a hopeful message to students. Speakers have recognised that print is in trouble, but they spoke of alternatives such as entrepreneurial and data journalism. I’m pleased to see how much data journalism has caught on.

“It’s great that Leeds Trinity Journalism Week has been trending on Twitter. In the future I’d like to see more panel discussions. Many speakers had conflicting views, and it would be interesting to see them address one another over these conflicts. I’d like to see a professional debate.”

Jake Harvey, 20, a sports journalism student said speakers had given a good insight into the industry. He added: “Most of the speakers have been quite positive. Blogging has been a key theme, along with the importance of social networking.”

Click below to hear Mark Byford's interview about the hard work he's put into organising Olympic coverage and how sad he'll be to leave the BBC...