Worn out, key journalist gets maligned (7)
I believe the answer is:
wronged
'maligned' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
'worn out key journalist' is the wordplay.
'out' indicates anagramming the letters (out can mean wrong or inaccurate).
'key' becomes 'g' (musical key).
'journalist' becomes 'ed' (short for editor).
'worn' with letters rearranged gives 'wron'.
'wron'+'g'+'ed'='WRONGED'
'gets' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for wronged that I've seen before include "Sinned against" , "Did injustice to - it wasn't right" , "described misleadingly" , "Treated unjustly" .)