New Press Revelations No Surprise

Demonstrating that they are as bad as the Tories at making very public judgment calls, the Labour leadership declared recently that Part 2 of the Leveson Inquiry was not a priority for them. This followed claims that assurances of No Leveson 2 had been given to the Murdoch mafiosi in return for the latter’s titles to endorse, or at least lay off, The Red Team.

All of which may not have been such a problem, had ITV not had Tabloids on Trial in the works, which explored the press’ use of what are known as The Dark Arts, and especially in the context of continuing legal actions against their number by people like the Duke of Sussex - whose campaign tells you why there is so much knocking copy directed in his general direction.

Rebecca Barry of ITV News set the scene: “I interview Prince Harry - plus others who found themselves catapulted onto the tabloid front pages … Our documentary also features Hugh Grant, Charlotte Church and Paul Gascoigne - as well as people suddenly thrust into the public eye”.

One of those thrust into the public eye was Paul Dadge, a first responder who had come to the aid of those wounded during the July 7th attacks in London. In return for his giving the press his mobile number, so they could ask him follow-up questions, they hacked his voicemail. He wasn’t a Sleb, there was no public interest defence whatever for the press to fall back on. The default behaviour was, at the time, to hack voicemail. Think about that.

And as to limits to the bad behaviour, there were none. That much has been confirmed by the presence of one Paul McMullan, whose recent book detailing his less than totally ethical activities is named after the phrase he made famous during his interrogation before the Leveson Inquiry - “Privacy is for Paedos”. A piece in Prospect magazine has the grim and gory details.

“The [Screws] had paid a policeman for a tip that Jennifer [Elliott, daughter of Denholm] was a heroin addict … ‘Yeah, I really went too far - she was begging because she had a heroin addiction. And that was enough, but I had to offer 50 quid for a shag. No, I think I changed it to 20 quid and she accepted that … So not only do I expose her as a beggar and a heroin addict, I now expose her as a bloody prostitute, which she wasn’t’”. Do go on.

“She was found hanging a few years later in Ibiza. She hanged herself, committed suicide. And I thought, you know, I went too far on that one”. He went too far when inventing one last vicious story about Diana, Princess of Wales. But “I'm not ashamed of any of the things” he got up to.

But, those who believe we should just “move on”, and that the press has cleaned up its act, will claim this is all in the past and that this kind of thing no longer happens. However, and here we encounter a significantly sized however, we have to take the press on trust for that. And taking the press on trust, in the past, has proved to be a most unwise course of action.

Just what has previously gone on, and may still be going on, was summed up by Paul Gascoigne: “I bought 6 phones, kept on changing numbers and thought, GOD WHEN IS IT GOING TO STOP? I become a recluse, didn’t speak to nobody”. Actor and campaigner Hugh Grant added “This isn’t only about phone hacking- there were microphones & trackers dropped in my car”.

It was more than phone hacking for former PM Gordon Brown: “This group had no limits, hacking my bank, utility accounts, and seeking police information. Even as Chancellor and Prime Minister”. Improper access to the Police National Computer was a costly item for the press. But for the most high profile targets, it was a cost they were prepared to pay.

Having watched Tabloids on Trial, Jim Hawkins concluded “The press hasn't cleaned up its act. There are still huge questions to be answered. And lots of people who watched last night will be asking when the second part of the Leveson Inquiry will happen”. Which last is now down to those controlling business at the Labour Party. Who may think they have nothing to fear.

So the press haven’t come for them yet? They will. And when they do, Labour’s NEC will not be able to out-clever them. Not this time they won’t.

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