Press Complaints Commission Kate Middleton response
“inadequate”
Summary
This Report
‘Self-Regulation
of the Press’ (HC 375) from the Culture, Media and Sport Committee has
been prompted by recent events including the conviction of Clive Goodman, the
royal editor of the News of the World, for interception of communications
without lawful authority and the press pursuit of Kate Middleton, the former
girlfriend of HRH Prince William.
The Committee believes the
press did not observe its' own code of practice – a system of self-regulation
of the press constructed in 1991 in the wake of the Calcutt Inquiry
‘Review
of Press Self-Regulation’ (Cm. 2135) and that, in the case of Middleton,
editors failed to take care not to use pictures obtained through harassment and
persistent pursuit.
It is felt that the Press Complaints Commission
response was inadequate and could have intervened sooner by issuing a desist
notice to editors. These recent events are viewed as a failure on the part of
the press to uphold certain standards of being mindful of the rights of
individuals in the news, particularly the breaching of the Editor's Code of
Practice by Goodman.
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If you are interested in privacy laws and in the regulation of the press,
this may be of interest.
The Culture, Media and Sport Committee believes
there should be a strengthening of the existing system of self-regulation, and
commends in particular steps taken by the Press Complaints Commission to
exercise more rigorous controls over the actions and expenditure of reporters.
The Committee is severely critical of the journalists' employers for
making little or no real effort to investigate the detail of their employees'
transactions, as shown by the Information Commissioner’s finding that large
numbers of journalists had dealings with a private investigator known to have
obtained personal data by illegal means.
It is suggested that a broader
investigation maybe in order to examine the issues of press behaviour and the
regulatory framework of the industry.
Read more on the work of the
Culture,
Media and Sport Committee.
Find out about on the
Press Complaints Commission.
See
more on the Information Commissioner’s
website.