Paul Dacre and Geoffrey Levy Owe the Miliband Family an Apology!

Last Friday, Geoffrey Levy wrote an 'essay' in the Daily Mail, headed :-

 

I won't link to the online piece, suffice it to say that it was an overtly vitriolic attempt to smear the Labour leader, Ed Miliband, through his father.

Many people expressed their dislike of Levy's article on social media. Ed Miliband himself was sufficiently upset by this slur on his father to tweet on Saturday:-

Tonight, Ed Miliband's Right of Reply letter was reproduced by Labour Press:

Ed Miliband: My Dad Was A Man Who Loved Britain

Comments from many who are impressed by the dignity of Miliband's letter appeared on Twitter.

 

Then it became abundantly clear that Paul Dacre, in an editorial for Tuesday's Mail, feels neither contrition nor sorrow over Geoffrey Levy's original article:-

 

 

The reaction of journalists and the public, to both right and left politically, has been enormous following the publication of Dacre's editorial and all but a very few have expressed disgust and anger.

Many people are aware that the Daily Mail has form in its support of far right-wing regimes and have tweeted evidence of this:-

There are several other examples of shocking articles like the above.

That Dacre could cheerfully denigrate the father of a political leader, whose beliefs do not match his or the leanings of his paper, also goes a very long way to illustrate the desperation of this editor to bring down Miliband for supporting the press regulation system backed by Lord Justice Leveson. 

Unfortunately for Dacre, his efforts serve only to show precisely why a different, much more ethical form of press regulation is needed....

Dacre and Desmond cock-a-hoop?

Today the Prime Minister, David Cameron, announced that a strict a new opt-in to Internet porn system is to be installed on every new computer.

Naturally the Daily Mail and Mail Online, long-time campaigners against family-unfriendly porn, wanted to show their appreciation that at last 'Something is to be Done About IT'!

The irony, nay hypocrisy, of Paul Dacre''s triumphant whoops of joy was not lost on most of those who saw the Daily Mail's headline this morning:

 What was it which drew so many loud guffaws? This:-

Is Paul Dacre really welcoming a move to block his daily 'Sidebar of Shame'?

We await a comment from Express' and Star's owner, Richard Desmond, with baited breath..... and a foul-language filter!

Update:

• Would the Daily Mail Website Fall Foul of the Online Porn Filters it has Championed? - New Statesman
• Cameron Refuses to Back Ban on Sun's Page 3 Topless Images - Guardian 
• Can we Trust the State to Censor Porn? - Spectator Blogs 

A Death and a Funeral Become Handy Hooks for Mail's prejudices..

When a political leader dies, it's not unusual for the media to feature eulogies, critical examinations of successes or failures and intimate, interesting tales of the life of the figure in question.

Below is a compilation of most of the front pages which appeared on Monday night (with thanks to Nick Sutton at the BBC):

With our mainly right-leaning press, the reporting of Baroness Thatcher's death and impending funeral was never going to be confined to a few dignified articles towards the back of any of our newspapers.

Most have predictably given over front-pages, inside pages and whole pull-out sections to facts and comment with a definite political slant, to be sure, and occasional evidence of a partial rewriting of history, perhaps understandably.

Today's Mirror, (a left-leaning paper), front page questions the cost of Baroness Thatcher's funeral:

But the Daily Mail....

....the Daily Mail has eagerly, nay greedily, seized upon this opportunity to grind what must be the best-honed political axes known in journalistic history!

It has set its attack-troops onto the 'Lefties' and the BBC in equal measure and with real campaigning zeal.

Today's front page cynically depicts one small group of people in demonstrating their disapproval of the former Prime Minister and her policies:

This, with its accompanying article ('penned' by 5 journalists!) is just a sample of the articles which are appearing in the Mail and in Mail Online like bullets out of an automatic rifle.
Another is headed:

Left's chorus of hatred: Champagne in the streets, students union cheers and vile internet taunts

• Glasgow: More than 300 people attended impromptu street party
• London: Over 100 people gathered in Brixton to 'celebrate'
• Facebook campaign to take 'Ding Dong! The Witch is Dead' to number one
• Durham Miners' Association: Her death was a 'great day' for coal miners
• Second most trending topic on Twitter: #nostatefuneral
• NUS National conference reported to have cheered at news of her death

Many of the photographs and articles are designed to point an accusatory finger at those on the left of British politics (or of no particular political persuasion) who, unlike Editor Paul Dacre and the owners of the Mail, do not remember Margaret Thatcher with affection.

Birmingham Council refuses to lower flag to half mast and councillors flounce out of minute's silence as Tony Blair urges Thatcher critics to 'show some respect'

• Union Jack flag still flies high outside Birmingham's Council House
• Tories brand Labour leaders 'petty, mean and vindictive'
• Blair: Urged critics of Thatcherite policies to ‘show some respect’.

The Mail looks forward to the funeral with not a little trepidation (salivation?):

Will the haters try to wreck Maggie's send-off? Police plan massive security operation 'True Blue' for Baroness Thatcher's funeral

One message?

(Full article Here)

As for the oft-battered-by-Dacre BBC, the Mail gleefully shrieks:

Public anger at BBC bias: Viewers hit out at lengthy coverage of poll tax and miners' strike after Baroness Thatcher's death

• Viewers complain bulletins gave too great an emphasis to critics
• Twitter users accuse BBC of 'shameless' bias against the former PM
• One viewer said: 'You name the socialist, they've interviewed them'
• Another said the coverage was 'an absolute Left-wing biased disgrace'

But as David Cridland, writing for the blog Media UK, points out all is not as it seems in the original Daily Mail article.

Further evidence of the Mail's fabrication of evidence against the BBC's coverage of the death of Margaret Thatcher appears in the Media Blog.

With still a week to go before the funeral takes place, one wonders what heights these paroxysms of outrage and indignation from those at the Mail will eventually reach! Spontaneous combustion, perhaps....

Image from the Naked Scientist website

 

Dacre Grimly Determined...

According to the Mail on Sunday today ( Note the by-line - David Rose - again!) -

Bombshell by Leveson's own adviser: His law to gag press is illegal as it breaches Human Rights Act (but she's banned from telling you what she advised inquiry)

• Shami Chakrabarti blasts Labour leader Ed Miliband’s ‘hasty and ill-considered’ endorsement of the report
• Director of Liberty also rebuked pro-legislation pressure groups such as Hacked Off for 'ill-informed debate'

By David Rose

This headline and the article beneath prompted a cacophony this morning of  'Told you so!' from the press and political commentators, and 'Traitor!' from those who believed a member of Lord Justice Leveson's panel would at least have seen his hymn sheet if not prepared  publicly to sing from it!

Then came:

This is taken from an article in the Inforrm Blog , written by Hugh Tomlinson QC. He continues:

Also:

The article in the Mail on Sunday is remarkable not only for the disingenuous inaccuracy of Mr Rose' prose, but for the inclusion of some of the most cleverly chosen images I've seen for a long time.... have a look! A case of 'They're wrong - just see by their photos how wrong they are!'

Mr Dacre, do have a quick shufti at your foot - I think you may have shot yourself in it.

UPDATE: 16:03 p.m. :

Liberty have just posted this article - explaining why the Mail on Sunday got Shami Chakrabarti's meaning so wrong...

Leveson Inquiry - Module 3 - Day 17 - Gordon Brown

Module 3 - Key Questions to be addressed in this Module

Useful Links:

Leveson Inquiry Witness Statements HERE 
Leveson Inquiry Witness Lists HERE 
Video Recordings of each day's proceedings HERE
Live Feed From Leveson Inquiry Site HERE
BBC Democracy Live Feed HERE 

Guardian Live Blog HERE

******************************************************************************

Links to articles, information and comment: 

@benfenton:

Somewhat grim mood among ‪#leveson‬ hacks this morning. Compound of the weather, a hard week ahead and general inquiryschmertz.

• Is Press Self-regulation Still a Possibility? - Roy Greenslade - Guardian
• Leveson's Draft Criteria For a Regulatory Solution 

‪@benfenton

#leveson‬ wants to avoid interparty politics. Asks for crossparty support. Looking for patterns of behaviour by pols and press over decades.

@dansabbagh:

Leveson calls for "cross party support" for his inquiry - call I think for Tory support - says sky bid is "small but significant" element.

‪

@nataliepeck:

#Leveson‬: BSkyB bid is a small but significant part of the story…is most recent example of interplay between politicians and the press.

@dansabbagh:

Leveson wants to hear more from people with ideas for PCC reform in Module 4, incl from chmn Lord Hunt. PCC not out of woods.

Leveson - my inquiry is not about "the politics of personality" even if it may be reported as such...

****************************************************************************** 

Gordon Brown  Witness Statement and Exhibits

Wikipedia Page

Official Website of Gordon and Sarah Brown

Press/TV coverage:

The Sun
Mail Online
Telegraph
Guardian
Independent
Mirror Online
New York Times 
BBC News

Sky News

Channel 4 News

Guardian Live Blog HERE

Gordon Brown being sworn in..

'Perhaps I've had time to reflect ...'

@BBCPeterHunt:
Leveson: Gordon Brown has been enjoying " a period of enforced reflection courtesy of the British people"
Leveson: Gordon Brown poses the question "who will defend the defenceless".

@nataliepeck:
Brown: The freedom that the press has has to be exercised with responsibility - conflation of fact and opinion is a problem. ‪

‪

@benfenton:

#Brown‬ says key things are tendency of press to editorialise outside editorial columns and treatment of eg the Dowlers in moments of grief.

‪#Brown‬: press regulation has never worked. It's not just rooting out bad press, but incentivising the good press too.

@rosschawkins:

Brown: I don't think we do enough to encourage the good (in the press)

(lots of tweeting about Brown getting lots of time & qs to muse generally on the press, doesn't mean Jay won't get to specifics)

Brown suggests BBC licence fee should be available for online and other news orgs ‪ 

@benfenton:

Brown suggests licence fee [which does not belong to the BBC @bbcnickrobinson ] could be shared to uphold journalism standards. ‪

Denies he fell asleep at Festival of Rememberance. Was praying. Misprints in his letter to mother of Afghanistan dead soldier were mistakes.

@rosschawkins:

(we've heard before view that papers don't just criticise pols actions, but suggest their failures are due to ill intent)

@nataliepeck:

Brown: It's too easy - following citizen journalism online - to sensationalise in the print media.

Jay asks about Blair's "feral beast" speech. Brown: I think Tony was saying exactly what I am saying today.

@tobyhelm:

Brown's testimony to Leveson a bit like a therapy session but very moving and powerful. Shows up all his complexities and sensitivities.

@nataliepeck:

Brown: The Conservative Party supported every one of the recommendations that were made by the Murdoch group. ‪

@rosschawkins:

Brown claim Cons went along with everything James Murdoch wanted; Jay suggesting this strays away from ambit of the question

Gordon Brown speaking about the Sun's publicising of the medical condition of his son.

@arusbridger:

Brown has had apology fm Fife health board. "highly likely" tt member of NHS staff leaked info re son to Sun via middle man

‪

@benfenton:

#Brown‬ [very upset apparently] asks if any parent would give explicit permission given to run the story. We did not do so, he says.

@rosschawkins:

Brown: there was no question of explicit permission

(Brooks was asked if she had "express agreement" of Browns and replied "Asbolutely"

(Brooks also pointed out Sarah Brown held 40th birthday celebration for her after this event, said there were "many letters and kind notes")

Jay: do you deny consent was given? Brown: Absolutely

@nataliepeck:

Jay: Do you deny that consent was given? Brown: Absolutely. My wife has issued a statement to that effect.

Brown: We wanted editors to agree that our children would not be covered while they were at nursery school and primary school. ‪

Brown: We didn't want our children to grow up as minor celebrities, and there were only two incidents where this was breached. ‪

Brown on wife's friendship with Rebekah Brooks: Sarah is one of the most forgiving people and I think she finds good in everyone.  

@rosschawkins:

Brown on why he had 13 meetings with Brooks after: I wd have been failing in duty if I had not tried to build consensus on Afghanistan

Brown: you can serve up dinner but you do not need to serve up BSkyB as part of the dinner

@nataliepeck:

Brown: We would never allow the public interest to be subjugated to the commercial or vested interests of any one company. ‪

Brown: Under James Murdoch's influence (2009-10) News International moved to having an aggressive public agenda [on media policy].

Brown: Politicians should expect scrutiny but question is whether you can justify fishing expeditions.

@rosschawkins:

Brown: passed to police tape of S Times insight reporters discussing underhand tactics

 

@nataliepeck:
Brown: Politicians should expect scrutiny but question is whether you can justify fishing expeditions.
Brown: During the time that I was chancellor, there was either a break-in or breach of my confidential records in every area.
Brown: Passed police a tape of Sunday Times reporters discussing accessing my info using illegal tactics.

@dansabbagh:

Brown attacks Sun Times ed Witherow, after Insight report into his flat purchase. Says he was sent a tape of SunTimes hacks discussing him.

Brown says Sun Times insisted London flat purchase was in a cheap "under the counter" deal but flat was advertised in Sun Times itself.

@nataliepeck:

Jay calls records of Brown's media meetings "a full range". Inc. Guardian, Times, Telegraph, Les Hinton, Lebedevs.

Brown: Had dinner with Murdoch after pre-recording interview with Andrew Marr (2007). Very careful to do it before any meetings.

Brown disagrees with Mandelson, who said relations with Murdoch were "closer than was wise".

Brown: The idea that I was influenced in what I did by Mr Rupert Murdoch’s views is frankly ridiculous. 

‪ 

@benfenton:

#Brown‬ says it is "nonsense" to suggest that I was following views of Rupert who "wd have had us out of Europe, at war with France&Germany"

@nataliepeck:

Brown: I don’t detract from the respect Murdoch deserves for having built up a very strong media empire.

@rosschawkins:

Brown doesn't think Blair's govt was too close to Murdoch, but doesn't know ‪

@nataliepeck:
Record shows eight meetings between Brown and Rupert Murdoch 2007-9, along with dinner with President Bush (2008). ‪

@benfenton:
Brown didn't get too close to Rupert, but admits should have tried for "openness of culture" with media, which "still eludes us" ‪

@nataliepeck:
Brown: I think the Sun had moved away from us from the time I became PM. They had severe reservations expressed in campaigns. 

‪

@benfenton:

#Brown‬ "I never complained when anyone withdrew support" Rejects Mandelson idea that he was "stung" by Sun u-turn.

#Brown‬ denies he was influenced by papers. "I was so obsessed that I barely read them" he tells ‪#leveson 

Jay asks if he received news of Sun u-turn with equanimity. [Brown smiles broadly and begins a long discursion]

@nataliepeck:

Brown: Spoke to editor of Sun two hours before paper withdrew support. I just left it after that.

Record shows 2007-9 calls with Rupert Murdoch - 11 in total.

@benfenton:

We are onto a phone call between Brown and Rupert. [This was a bone of contention about who said what. Rupert says GB "declared war" on NI]

‪#Brown‬ says he wdnt make a call like that without "someone on the call" making a record of what was said. I wd never have done otherwise.

@nataliepeck:

Brown: I didn't engage in emailing with Rupert Murdoch, didn't have his number on my mobile phone.

Jay on 10 Nov 2009 call at 12.33pm. Brown: It was a call I placed because of what was happening in Afghanistan. Email followed. ‪ 

Paraphrased: There was no declaration of war phone-call to Mr Murdoch..

‪

@benfenton:

#Brown‬ says "Such a conversation never took place" says he is "shocked and surprised" that Murdoch shd claim that it did.

"This did not happen. There is no evidence that it happened.But it didn't happen.I had no reason to call him & I would not have called him."

@rosschawkins:

Jay trying to get to whether Brown said something like that in call in November ‪

Brown: I had concluded Sun were damaging our effort in Afghanistan; wanted to talk to R Murdoch about it

Brown: there was no reference to threats or Conservative parties or anything  

@nataliepeck:

Brown: Murdoch asked me (Nov) to phone Mrs Brooks and hinted she would want to apologise for what had happened.

Brown: I agreed I would talk to her, and then sent letter to Murdoch about Afghanistan

@benfenton:

Brown wanted to check with Rupert that he still supported the war.Brown says NI were trying to make it all look like this was about politics

...rather than about phone hacking.It's important this is cleared up,Brown says. There is no evidence of a call,a threat or anything like it

Brooks told ‪#Brown‬ that Sun had got tape of this phone call.Very unusual for a tape of a call from Downing St to appear in paper.

Brooks wanted to say they had got the tape lawfully and appropriately, but she was not about to apologise. Said he was not angry as RB said.

‪

@rosschawkins:

#leveson‬ sympathises, suggests Brown has a better temper than he would have in circumstances

 

@benfenton:

Brown wrote to Rupert: I wd rather have been an honest one-term PM than a dishoneset two-term PM. Murdoch did not reply.

@nataliepeck:

Brown: None of these letters refer to Murdoch's political views, or the Sun, NoW or the Sunday Times.

Jay moves on to questions on Paul Dacre. Brown says he didn't see Mail editor-in-chief that much.

Brown: Dacre was very kind when we had difficulties with our first child, I have not forgotten that, but had no support from Mail.  

Record shows Brown had nine meetings with Dacre 2007-10.

Brown: I could understand Dacre's strength of feeling on DPA, my own instinct was should be public interest defence.

Brown: I had already made up my mind before I went into the meeting [with Hinton, MacLennan and Dacre, Sep 2007]. ‪ 

Brown: I was conscious that there was a set of public interest issues raised in the Editor's Code and it seemed to me reasonable.

Brown: I distinctly remember conversation and I said, I am persuaded that we need this public interest defence.

Brown says he was aware there was a public interest defence in s55 of the DPA. ‪ 

Brown: The issue was whether we would trigger two year sentence at a later stage, while leaving it in the legislation

From Guardian Live Blog:

Dan Sabbagh has just sent us this list of Brown's meetings with Rupert Murdoch, while he was prime minister, as disclosed to the Leveson inquiry.

2007
05/10 - Meeting 13:05-13:10
29/10 - Lunch 13:30-15:00
2008
22/01 - 12:35-14:00 Lunch
06/06 - 19:10 Dinner with Mrs Murdoch
16/06 - 21:50 Dinner
2009
13/01 - 07:00-08:30 Breakfast
26/06 - 19:00-21:30 Dinner
14/12 - 08:30-10:00 Breakfast

@nataliepeck:

Brown: Didn't need persuading by Mr Dacre about this. I felt strongly about it myself. ‪

Jay moves on to SpAds. Campbell suggested problem with appointment of Whelan. ‪

@rosschawkins:

Jay: Were Whelan and McBride systematic perpetrators of anonymous, selective briefings? Brown: No not at all

@nataliepeck:

Brown: The people that worked for me were under specific guidance about what they had to do.

Brown: McBride was pushed back from the front line but in this he made a very bad mistake and had to go. 

Brown: I don't remember any specific documentation or letters from O'Donnell/Hayward warning me about McBride.

Brown denies asking Whelan to brief against Darling [when Chancellor].

Brown: A Darling was friend of mine as well as colleague. Nobody in my position would instruct briefing against senior minister. ‪ 

Jay asks whether a mythology has built up around SpAds or whether they acted without Brown's authorisation.

Brown: I actually had tougher rules than was the general rule that was applied to political advisers.

Brown: I would have preferred open briefings given by ministers to the press everyday. Inherited a system based on exclusivity. 

@benfenton:

Brown says the lobby system shd be abandoned in favour of public briefing in front of cameras. Include bloggers [already does, doesn't it?] 

@nataliepeck:

Brown: There was an animosity between Watson and NI. I was well aware the NI wanted to get rid of him.

Brown: Watson came to deliver a present for one of my children [denies any political discussions]. Calls it entirely social. ‪

@rosschawkins:
The Tom Watson visit was purely a social call, if GB had known he was planning a Blair must go letter wd have told him to desist

@nataliepeck:
Brown: I don't think in the present system, the dealing with complaints is satisfactory. ‪


From Guardian Live Blog:

The Guardian's Lisa O'Carroll has just tweeted:

GB written statement: my wife Sarah received a text from rebekah brooks questioning the continuation of Tom Watson as a minister #leveson
— lisa o'carroll (@lisaocarroll) June 11, 2012

Brown says Watson's trip to Scotland before the "curry house coup" against Tony Blair had nothing to do with politics; the MP was delivering a present for his newborn baby.

BBC News political correspondent Robin Brant has just tweeted:

jay says he will request the inquiry is given access to the brooks/sarah brown text (from SB phone) about tom watson's future as minister
— Robin Brant (@robindbrant) June 11, 2012

Jay turns to Brown's proposals for future regulation of the press.
Brown says the PCC's handling of complaints is satisfactory. He adds quality journalism should be "incentivised" and there would be cross-party support for that.

Brown says there is problem about financing quality journalism in the future and that new avenues should be explored.
He adds: "Is the BBC model of any use to us? I think we ought to look at that."

The Guardian's Lisa O'Carroll has just tweeted:

GB written statement: editors form too large a part of PCC. Penalties in no way commensurate with offences #Leveson
— lisa o'carroll (@lisaocarroll) June 11, 2012

Rhodri Davies QC, counsel for News International, asks if he can put questions to Brown about the disputed phone call with Murdoch.

Mr Rhodri Davies, for News International

From Guardian Live Blog:

Here is a lunchtime summary of Gordon Brown's evidence:

• Fife NHS board has apologised after details of Brown's son's cystic fibrosis were leaked.
• Brown "absolutely" denied giving the Sun permission to run front-page story about his son's illness, and said he was presented with a "fait accompli".
• Brown did not declare war on News Corp in a phone call with Murdoch in 2009, he told inquiry.
• He denied special advisers Charlie Whelan and Damian McBride briefed against government colleagues.
• Brown told inquiry he has passed to police a recording of Sunday Times reporters discussing "illegal [newsgathering] techniques".
• News International's "commercial interests" took over under James Murdoch, Brown claimed.
• He criticised the Sun for its "sensationalised" coverage of Labour government stance on the Afghanistan conflict.