Tim Sebastian has been at the forefront of journalism for many years, fighting to uphold values of media freedom and freedom of information throughout his career.Known for his particularly relentless interviewing technique which saw many influential figures squirm on BBC’s Hard Talk, he has furthered the cause of media freedom by holding people to account through his journalism.Gulf Times spoke to Sebastian this week after the final Doha Debate of the current season, and the chairman of the series discussed how recent events in the region highlight the importance of media and social media. “There are so many great and very brave journalists in the Arab world who have taken a real hit in order to do a proper professional job,” he said, adding “if these revolutions are to succeed then I think people owe a huge debt of gratitude to journalists.” “I think media freedom is always a battle and everyone is battling - individuals, governments and courts,” he said.The media has also played a major role in leading to stories over financial improprieties around FIFA and Qatari officials, and Sebastian expressed his hope that investigations will lead to the truth emerging from the current mess. “I think Qatar’s reputation will depend on the findings of the investigation, and I hope they will be able to prove the truth – that is what everyone wants to see come out, nothing more than the truth,” he said.“However, I listen to comments from Sepp Blatter that ‘there is no crisis in FIFA’ and I wonder what planet he is on, because if this isn’t a crisis then I don’t know what is,” he added.Following the recent court battles over privacy and super injunctions in the UK, Sebastian said that information should be made public, but only if it affects the general population.He said: “I think one should always favour disclosure in society. Having said that, the courts are right about one thing, if newspapers are going to pry into peoples’ private lives then they should be able to show a clear public interest and not just salacious interest.”Sebastian argued that a free press and media scrutiny is essential to hold figures of authority to account in any society.“The media do a great job, they are the watchdogs of society and every society needs a free press,” he added.Commenting on the local press in Qatar, he added “I wish it had more freedom.”