Periods of time chief journalist wiped out (6)
I believe the answer is:
erased
'wiped out' is the definition.
('erase' can be a synonym of 'wipe out')
'periods of time chief journalist' is the wordplay.
'periods of time' becomes 'eras' (I've seen this before).
'chief journalist' becomes 'ed' (short for editor. I am not sure about the 'chief' bit.).
'eras'+'ed'='ERASED'
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for erased that I've seen before include "Removed by rubbing" , "Removed completely" , "Red sea (anag)" , "torn off" , "Rubbed out, expunged" .)