In June 1999 Jonathan Aitken, a former minister in John Major's government, was sent to prison. The news was reported around the world, for it does not often happen that a minister is found guilty in a court of law. Credit in this case goes to The Guardian; it was this newspaper that revealed and proved that the minister had lied. The newspaper wrote about Aitken's dubious affairs connected with arms trading for Saudi Arabia, but the minister persistently denied the newspaper's claims. Finally the paper's journalists succeeded in acquiring a crown proof against Aitken in the form of a hotel bill paid by an arms trader. Aitken's wife and daughter also helped him giving false statements. This story is good proof of the need for investigative journalism. It is a story with a happy ending - which is not very frequently the case. Peter Preston, Laurie Flynn and Luke Harding, guests at the journalistic evening, explained that the point of this uncertain, long-lasting and expensive business - "investigative journalism" - is to change something. "True journalism does not consist of big cases but rather of articles which influence the events", said Peter Preston. He explained that investigative journalism seeks information under the surface, and its goal is to interpret and explain it. "This should be the role of all media, for this is what democracy is based upon", he emphasised. He also added that newspapers which stimulate investigative journalism do not aim to raise their circulation but do it because such stories help their reputation. "Is there a difference between journalism and Disney films?" asked Laurie Flynn, and went on to say that everything depends on aspirations, on the kind of newspaper one wants to have, and on what kind of reporters one has on hand. Flynn, who has been exploring the issue of the health dangers related to asbestos for 29 years, said that professional journalism also develops through mistakes and not only through triumphs. "There is nothing wrong with making mistakes - only that we have to rectify them in the right way", he added. Flynn also admitted that information sources manipulate the media, and vice versa, and he claimed that such sources should be located but not revealed. Luke Harding said that it is easier for people to make decisions if they know all the facts, and one can only arrive at all the facts by persistent investigation.