Voluntary codes of practice, self regulation and other forms of self discipline are not working.

Freedom of the Press

Fleet Street

When I was a boy, I never had the vision of being a train driver, or a bus conductor, or a fire-fighter or any other of the thousand and one occupations that almost every boy has the ambition to fill in later life. For me, there was only one occupation that drew me like an irresistible magnet. I always wanted to be a newspaper reporter, an investigative journalist who would expose corruption and wrong doing and hold those responsible to account in the court of public opinion and even in the courts of the land. Over the years, the press has been responsible for exposing the scandal of John Perfumo, the excesses of Rachman and the exploitation of homeless and vulnerable in society, the Washington Post reporters Bernstein and Woodward, bringing down Richard Nixon and his crooked administration in exposing the Watergate conspiracy and more recently still the MP's Expenses Scandal which shook the political establishment of the United Kingdom to the core. Consequently, I hold freedom of the press to be cornerstone of democracy.

With freedom however, comes certain responsibilities and obligations. Over recent years, specific sections of the press have overstepped the line and brought the concept of press freedom into disrepute. The content of the smear campaigns waged by these "Press Barons" has become more and more vitriolic as each competes with the other to fill their articles and pages with lies and allegations so outrageous they they become almost comic. The coverage and subsequent comment by one of these "newspapers in particularly in connection with the Hillsborough Disaster, is a national disgrace which will remain as a testament to media abasement. However, the sinister motivations for these scurrilous reports and denunciations, lies in the desire of the proprietors to impose their own values, opinions and political structure on society by whatever means necessary. It is an attack not only on the individual "victims", but also on democracy itself. Personal attacks on those who oppose or are deemed to be a threat to the position of the "establishment" as determined by the press, are not a new phenomenon in the United Kingdom. Harold Wilson, Michael Foot and no doubt Clement Atlee have all been targeted to a greater or lesser extent over the years since the end of the war. The "Reds Under the Bed" scenario, has been a favourite scare tactic of the right wing press for many years, but it is not only politicians of "the left", who have been subjected to scrutiny and abuse. Attacks on ethnic minorities, religious sects, and individuals have been hounded and persecuted by the self appointed guardians of the nation from their executive offices in Fleet Street and now in Kensington, Wapping or Canary Wharf.

Over recent years, the excesses of these "newspapers" has immeasurably exceeded what any society can accept as reasonable and fair comment. More recently, Sky Television News has joined the ranks of the press inquisitors and now pursues the perceived "threats" with lies, smears and abuse through what appears to be a collection of specially recruited and trained presenters to berate and seek to intimidate anyone being interviewed. Fortunately however, a number of interviewees are able to stand up to the Sky News tactics, but all too often the interviewer has the last word. The common factor in both the newspaper and television ferocity, is that in all cases they are able to "get away with it" with no sanction or censure or any form of control being applied. In the same way as the playground bully will push the bounds of their behaviour and become more savage, then the media too will continue to go beyond the limits until they are stopped. It is abundantly clear that the notion of voluntary codes of practice, self regulation and other forms of self discipline are not working and probably never have. There is a compelling case for a statutory independent body with the necessary teeth and avaiable sanctions to enforce its decisions, to watch over the activities and practices of the media and the content of their newspaper pages. Only in this way, will it be possible to ensure that a free and democractic press is not overwhelmed and submerged by a corrupt and iniquitous media, driven by a few vested interests intent on destroying democracy in this country, as they impose their own regime on our society.

Looking back to my childhood ambition, I can only conclude that had history taken a different course, I would be ashamed to be a reporter or journalist or even part of today's media machinations.