Madeleine McCann's Parent Urges Stricter Media Regulation Following Recollections of Press "Hounding".
Gerry McCann, father to Madeleine McCann has issued a call for greater oversight for the UK media, detailing how being "monstered" by the press made him feel like he was being "overwhelmed".
A Family Tormented by Press "Abuses"
Gerry McCann stated that his family was subjected to press "excesses" and that the media had "consistently hampered" the search for answers regarding his daughter's 2007 disappearance.
He noted that the intrusion took a "heavy burden" on his family. "We endured sustained interest and misleading headlines for over a year that led us to take legal action to stop it," he explained.
"We are lucky. We survived. We had strong support. But I can promise you, there were times where I felt like I was being suffocated, and it was the media, mainly, not the situation we were in," he recounted.
An Appeal for Revive Press Regulation Review
The McCanns are among dozens of individuals who have put their names to a letter urging ministers to reopen the second part of the Leveson investigation, which was intended to examine the dynamic between the media and the police.
McCann said it was unacceptable that over a year later, press regulation was "not being prioritized". He described how his family had been endured "relentless targeting" by parts of the media and that the press was "posted" outside his home for months after Madeleine went missing.
Describing the Harassment
Recalling the harassment, he said: "Media at our doorstep, cameras being shoved their cameras against our car window, when we had two-year-old twins in the back who were frightened, and how upsetting that is for you as a parent."
"It's the half-truths. It's the fabrication of stories to fit the agenda, rather than the facts, which destroys people's lives," he stated.
The Need for Stronger Oversight and Accountability
He said the conduct highlighted why there needed to be tougher press regulation. "At night, as we prepared for bed, we'd put on the news, and there'd be major reports about ourselves and alleged events," he described.
"That almost pulls you under, and you can see how people are broken by it and think they can't get out of it. It's so damaging, and we need that protection. There must be accountability. And at the minute, for most of the major publishers, there is little accountability," he concluded.
Government Response and Changing Media Landscape
A government minister commented that a follow-up part of the inquiry had been ruled out and that the media landscape was now drastically altered.
"We agree that the context has evolved profoundly since the Leveson's second phase was proposed: people now are more likely to get their news online from a whole variety of sources, which has presented new and different challenges," they explained.
It was also noted that balancing the rights of victims with the need for a free press was a "really difficult thing to get right," but acknowledged that "steps must be taken in this area".
An Enduring Search for Closure
The child went missing from a Portuguese holiday resort in 2007 at the age of three. It was stated that it was "absolutely dismaying" how the press had frequently obstructed with the investigation.
"Leaked information which was meant for police only... So if you were the perpetrator, you knew a lot more than you should have done," he explained.
Speaking about hope, he said the chance he would find his daughter was "slim but it's not extinguished". "Our wish is to find her alive, but we need to establish the facts and hold the perpetrator, and people are at risk while that perpetrator is free," he concluded.