Sunday 10 July 2011

Phone Hacking

I picked up the Sunday Telegraph today and the first 8 pages were dedicated to the phone hacking story. Four pages of excuses, apologies and promises from Assistant Commissioner John Yates. Three pages of hand ringing and editorial. One page of opinion on how the press should, or rather shouldn't, be regulated in future.

I am not sure that there is public interest sufficient to justify this coverage. Did anyone give a damn when the Royal Family, celebrities and politicians were having their voice mails hacked?  The current revelations are quite disgusting and the politicians are falling all over each other to be seen to be taking action and show some leadership. The same politicians that were fawning all over News International to get support for their party.

After two very expensive public enquiries we will learn that there has been extensive phone hacking taking place within News International and perhaps elsewhere. Some people will go to prison as a result of the police investigation. (The current one that is actually investigating rather than burying it.) Phone hacking will still be illegal. We may get a new body to replace the rather toothless Press Complaints Commission although this is fraught with danger if the independence of the press is to be maintained.

Little will change while there still remains an insatiable appetite by a significant proportion of our population for the salacious gossip and scandal that fills most of the Sunday rags.

3 comments:

  1. I for one cannot believe the hypocrisy of The Guardian newspaper who with self assure smugness posted so many stories from the wikileaks files, secrets that has probably led to much death and destruction in various parts of the world and at the very least a destabilizing effect on some regions.
    Yet I see the Editor come on TV saying how disgusting this hacking is. His paper has had the most disgusting hacked information ever yet because they were stolen secrets hacked out of military security ad it was against certain States and not individuals they slap themselves on the back for a job well done.
    I wonder if the dead would be congratulating them for their hacked stories.

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  2. The big questions already seem to be given up on in today's news. Lurking under all this is a 20 year old axe murder and a bungled trial in which the prosecution wanted to give evidence from some 'grass' who had his sentence reduced from 28 to 3 years. We need a public enquiry into our political system.

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  3. the usual suspects:
    http://youtu.be/ltVTkYmFLFQ

    "The death is currently being treated as unexplained, but not thought to be suspicious. Police investigations into this incident are ongoing."
    the cynics amongst us already know the outcome to that statement. The police are already heavily involved . Allegedly.

    http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/jul/18/news-of-the-world-sean-hoare

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