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Leveson's legacy: will investigative journalists face ever greater obstacles?
Nicholas Jones
DATELINE: 1/3/13
Investigative journalism – across both the press and broadcasting – will almost certainly suffer as a result of the Leveson Inquiry and the introduction of a new regulatory regime. Most speakers at the launch of a new book – After Leveson? The future of British Journalism – feared the worst.
Perhaps the clearest warning of the obstacles that would be placed in the way of investigative journalism came from Dorothy Byrne, head of news and current affairs at Channel Four Television, who gave a vivid description of the way "multi-billion pound organisations and evil regimes" used "tiers of incredibly expensive lawyers" to thwart Channel Four's investigations. She said that any new regulatory regime for the press would be scrutinised by lawyers to find new ways to frustrate and curb newspaper investigations.
Her concern was echoed by Mick Hume of the Free Speech Network and the investigative journalist Paul Lashmar. But Evan Harris, Associate Director of Hacked Off, the group campaigning for the introduction of the Leveson recommendations, disagreed and insisted that Leveson had not proposed any alterations to the existing regulatory code of the Press Complaints Commission.
The future prospects for investigative journalism dominated much of the debate at the Media Society event to launch After Leveson? (26.2.2013)
Mick Hume argued that the Leveson Inquiry and the clamour for tighter regulation had already led to a chilling effect. It would now be illegal under the Bribery Act for the Daily Telegraph to have bought the stolen computer disc which contained details of MPs' fraudulent expenses; the Sun's investigative editor believed there was now an "ice age in investigative journalism" because newspapers could no longer pay for information.
Hume thought the root of the problem was that Hacked Off and the supporters of Leveson knew nothing about investigative journalism. History showed that the most successful investigative journalists had always been rule breakers, ready to do "unethical things" because "a free press is a dirty world."Paul Lashmar was concerned at the way the Police were following Lord Justice Leveson's recommendations and making it harder for officers who wanted to act as whistleblowers. Lashmar had benefited from "hundreds of sessions with police officers off the record" and the extra layers of regulation and compliance would make it harder for investigative journalism."What has gone wrong over the last thirty years is that a lot of people lost their moral compass; economic pressure meant using short cuts that were not in the public interest."
Dorothy Byrne said newspapers should learn from Channel Four's experience because the broadcasting regulations gave major companies and regimes every opportunity to frustrate their reporting. "We spend hardly any time dealing with complaints from ordinary people. We have such strict regulation (under Ofcom) that we cannot do what the newspapers have done. The greatest amount of time is spent dealing with multi-billion pound organisations and evil regimes who have read every single page of the regulations and try everything they can to use that as an excuse to thwart us...using every bit of regulation to stop our programmes and that is costing us a massive amount of money. "Anyone thinking of legal regulation of the press must remember these organisations and regimes will use it to try to stop freedom of speech...please look at what happens in practice and how these people could use it against the press."
Evan Harris insisted that the Leveson Report did not suggest any extension of the Press Complaints Commission's code. "What is clear is that application of the code has to be effective, which the PCC admits had not been effective; and the press accepts it has not been effective. But Leveson is not proposing more regulation. Leveson is not a threat to free speech. Voluntary press regulation should be given another chance. We can be secure in having better journalism emerging from a swamp of bad journalism."
After Leveson? (published by Abramis Academic Publishing) includes chapters by CPBF members Nicholas Jones (A meaningless charade? Rules to prevent ministers colluding with the media likely to be ineffective) and Julian Petley (A distant prospect? The faults in the Free Speech Network line?)
Last modified: Friday, March 1, 2013
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Previous Leveson Inquiry stories
Campaign rejects 'cave in' to press barons
Labour: Conservative royal charter 'dilutes' Leveson
Labour divided on response to royal charter's press 'verifier'
Lords rebellion means key part of Leveson proposals will be enacted ...
Leveson report: Lords unveil proposals in frustration at lack of progress
Evans backs statutory underpinning
New regulation body could be delayed
Leveson reforms could be made by charitable trust, says industry group
Leveson Recommendations – the Information Commissioner responds and the Press misreports
Leveson data protection plans 'could have chilling effect on journalism'
Leveson is being subverted by Cameron
Leveson report: parties discuss plan to safeguard royal charter on press
Labour asks for party leader's meeting to thrash out Leveson deal
Lord Smith, Simon Jenkins and Lord Phillips named press regulator advisers
Briefing paper on media plurality and ownership
Leveson report: Cameron softens his opposition to statutory underpinning
Analysis of Delaunay
Newspaper editors sign up to Leveson
The Leveson Report: Almost there but...
Lord Justice Leveson left floundering in wake of press proprietors' pre-emptive strike
Leveson: does the sentence fit the crime?
The Prisoner of Fleet Street
Leveson reports
National editors distance themselves from Hunt-Black press reform plan
Lobbying for media reform
Newspapers accused of keeping readers in dark on press regulation
When is a last chance a last chance? Can John Whittingdale explain?
Leveson: the Press skews the debate
NUJ comes out in support of press regulation backed by statute
Mirror hit by High Court claims over phone hacking
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Notices
Events & Announcements
World Press Freedom Day
More reporters are currently imprisoned in Turkey than in any other country in the world. Only a matter of weeks ago lawyers failed to persuade a Turkish court to release a 76-year-old journalist from a Turkish internet news station.
World Press Freedom Day on Friday May 3, 2013 is being marked in Britain by a rally to highlight the dangers facing journalists in Turkey and in this podcast, Nicholas Jones speaks to Barry White, Organiser at the Campaign for Press and Broadcasting Freedom, and Sam Bamford, the TUC's policy officer for Eastern Europe and Africa about the importance of a campaign to highlight international press freedom.
The World Press Freedom Day rally is being staged by the National Union of Journalists at the NUJ head office, Gray’s Inn Road, London WC1 on Thursday May 2, 6pm-8pm.
DATELINE: 27/4/13
UK launch of EU media campaign
DATELINE: 13/3/13
The UK launch of a 'European Citizens' Initiative' calling for EU rules against concentration of media power will take place on Thursday March 21 from 11:00am – 12:30pm in Committee Room 4A at the House of Lords, London. Guest speakers will include actor and activist Hugh Grant (pictured), media consultant Claire Enders, Professor Steven Barnett, Barry McCall (President of the NUJ) and Marc Gruber (Director of the European Federation of Journalists).
A European Citizens' Initiative is an official petition, like a Downing Street petition. If it succeeds in gathering a million signatures across the EU, the Commission is obliged to respond.
This petition calls for the EU to act to protect media pluralism and press freedom.
CPBF Annual General Meeting
DATELINE: 1/3/13
Make a note in your diary
Saturday 13 July 2013 from 10.00am
NUJ HQ, 308/312 Gray's Inn Road, London WC1.
Leveson, media ownership, CPBF future work.
DOWNLOAD FREEPRESS NOW
DATELINE: 26/3/10
Download Freepress in PDF, ePub or mobi format. Issue 194 now available.
MEDIA FOR ALL CONFERENCE
DATELINE: 26/3/10
Papers from the Media for All Conference
MEDIA MANIFESTO
DATELINE: 26/3/10
The media’s job is to inform and entertain us but we rely on them too to tell us what our rulers and representatives are up to. In the run-up to the Iraq war the government used spin and disinformation in the media to create panic and mislead people. The truth is coming out now, but we need stronger, more independent media to be able to scrutinise governments and make informed choices.
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Previous stories
Leveson Inquiry
Campaign rejects 'cave in' to press barons
Labour: Conservative royal charter 'dilutes' Leveson
Labour divided on response to royal charter's press 'verifier'
Lords rebellion means key part of Leveson proposals will be enacted ...
Leveson report: Lords unveil proposals in frustration at lack of progress
Evans backs statutory underpinning
New regulation body could be delayed
Leveson reforms could be made by charitable trust, says industry group
Leveson Recommendations – the Information Commissioner responds and the Press misreports
Leveson data protection plans 'could have chilling effect on journalism'
Leveson is being subverted by Cameron
Leveson report: parties discuss plan to safeguard royal charter on press
Labour asks for party leader's meeting to thrash out Leveson deal
Lord Smith, Simon Jenkins and Lord Phillips named press regulator advisers
Briefing paper on media plurality and ownership
Leveson report: Cameron softens his opposition to statutory underpinning
Analysis of Delaunay
Newspaper editors sign up to Leveson
The Leveson Report: Almost there but...
Lord Justice Leveson left floundering in wake of press proprietors' pre-emptive strike
Leveson: does the sentence fit the crime?
The Prisoner of Fleet Street
Leveson reports
National editors distance themselves from Hunt-Black press reform plan
Lobbying for media reform
Newspapers accused of keeping readers in dark on press regulation
When is a last chance a last chance? Can John Whittingdale explain?
Leveson: the Press skews the debate
NUJ comes out in support of press regulation backed by statute
Mirror hit by High Court claims over phone hacking
