Of Newspapers, Intimidation and Character assassination
I support the freedom of the press. However annoying it is, Britain would be less free and government worse without it.
That's why I opposed Section 40 and the Leveson over-reaction to phone hacking.
As I have quoted Eric Pickles here as having said long before he became a cabinet minister,
"If the press is drinking in the last chance saloon, a wise government will think long and hard before calling time."
Of course, the fact that I have always defended the freedom of the press makes it all the more infuriating to me when they abuse it. And there have been some pretty egregious cases of such abuse on the front pages this week.
One minister who voted Leave and strongly supports Brexit said of the Daily Telegraph front page attacking some of his pro-remain colleages that it was obvious who came well out of that headline,
"and it isn't the Daily Telegraph."
Today's Sun headline is worse.
If the allegations in large letters on the Sun front page are true are false they are a particularly nasty libel and character assassination, if true it is invasion of privacy and still potentially character assassination because the Sun itself admits in much smaller letters on the front page that there is no way to be certain who was responsible for the material concerned.
I quoted earlier this week what the police officer who was acting head of the Metropolitan Police at the time said about the allegations which today's Sun headline is about.
""I regret it's in the public domain."
"There was no criminality involved, there were no victims, there was no vulnerability and it was not a matter of extraordinary public interest."
That's why I opposed Section 40 and the Leveson over-reaction to phone hacking.
As I have quoted Eric Pickles here as having said long before he became a cabinet minister,
"If the press is drinking in the last chance saloon, a wise government will think long and hard before calling time."
Of course, the fact that I have always defended the freedom of the press makes it all the more infuriating to me when they abuse it. And there have been some pretty egregious cases of such abuse on the front pages this week.
One minister who voted Leave and strongly supports Brexit said of the Daily Telegraph front page attacking some of his pro-remain colleages that it was obvious who came well out of that headline,
"and it isn't the Daily Telegraph."
Today's Sun headline is worse.
If the allegations in large letters on the Sun front page are true are false they are a particularly nasty libel and character assassination, if true it is invasion of privacy and still potentially character assassination because the Sun itself admits in much smaller letters on the front page that there is no way to be certain who was responsible for the material concerned.
I quoted earlier this week what the police officer who was acting head of the Metropolitan Police at the time said about the allegations which today's Sun headline is about.
""I regret it's in the public domain."
"There was no criminality involved, there were no victims, there was no vulnerability and it was not a matter of extraordinary public interest."
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