In the same year, his journalistic mentor Pedlar Palmer moved to "The Sydney Morning Herald" and Fingleton became disenchanted. He was coaxed by cricketer-journalist to move his publication, the "Telegraph Pictorial" where he worked for several years before the outbreak of the Second World War. However, Fingleton's initiation into his new workplace was difficult as the "Telegraph Pictorial" had just merged with the "Daily Telegraph" and around half the workforce were to be made redundant. Fingleton was demoted from the main staff to a freelance correspondent covering events in the inner-city suburbs of Redfern and Newtown. In such crime-ridden and turbulent working-class area, Fingleton was productive in break stories and was soon restored to the regular staff.