It’s the type of story that Rupert Murdoch, James Murdoch and Rebekah Brooks would be all over. Lies, deceit, scandal and shame- all the necessary ingredients for a News of The World front page splash. The very fundamentals of journalism such as objectivity, democracy and truth are being questioned because of the circus that this phone-hacking scandal has created.
Rupert Murdoch and co. are finding themselves in a media whirlwind but for once, not the sort they expected. How has it come to this? How has a media giant like News International found itself fighting for its reputation?
In March 2003, the relationship between the Police and the media was questioned. Rebekah Brooks admitted to a Commons Select Committee that News of the World journalists had paid the police to obtain information for them. Coulson told the committee that the News of the World obtained the information within law and journalism ethics and only obtained information in this way if it was in the public interest.
In April 2005, private investigator, Steve Whittamore was jailed after breaching the Data Protection Act 1998. He was paid to illegally obtain information about celebrities and public figures. Police obtained information from his home which indicated that 300 journalists had asked Whittamore to obtain information from confidential databases on more than 13,000 occasions.
Two years later, News of the World Royal correspondent, Clive Goodman and private investigator, Glenn Mulcaire were sentenced to jail for illegally hacking into the phones of the Royal family.
Four years on, the News of World is no more. The Murdochs have closed down the long standing newspaper due to the new evidence that has emerged. Hacking into the voicemail messages of murdered school girl, Milly Dowler, was the final nail in the coffin for the title.
Some believe that the lack of evidence made public in the 2007 investigation is an indication of the Police’s close relations with the press.
Journalists have the power to decide what angle to tell a story in. Therefore, my theory is that the Police probably wanted to look as if they did something about the scandal but didn’t divulge the true extent of it, in order to maintain a good relationship with the press. I also think that some politicians follow suit.
The bottom line is that it’s illegal to intercept voicemail messages under Section 1 of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA). However, how has such criminality entered into this profession? My theory is that it has always been there but News Corp has just got caught in the act. I’m not saying that all journalists would take the same measures to get a story but I believe many have went to similar lengths in the past. An anonymous source told the Guardian-
"I'm damn sure if we'd had mobiles when I was on the road we'd have been listening in...After all, we got up to every other trick in the book. And don't go on about that public interest nonsense. We did what we did because the desk was always on our backs to get the story. “(Anonymous, Guardian)
Journalists are increasingly faced with the pressure of commercialisation. They are put under pressure to get a ‘juicy’ front page spread in order to bring in more readers and revenue. However, if anything, News Corp has taught us that ethics need to come first.
Investigative journalism involves uncovering wrong-doing through original research about something which a person or organisation is trying to keep a secret. It's the type of journalism that tends to dig out information, by any means necessary but for the right reasons. The ends have to justify the means. The story has to be in the public interest. It seems to me that the News of the World carried out a lot of fishing expeditions rather than hard-hitting journalism. The real danger is that there seems to be varying degrees in opinion, in terms of what journalists would find to be acceptable conduct.
The way of maintaining ethical principles is through journalism guidelines and this need is reflected in the many regulatory bodies that exist (the Press Complaints Commission, Ofcom and the National Union of Journalists). However, the powers of these regulatory bodies need to be revised. Many of the regulators don’t have strict enough punishments for journalists who step over the mark. That is why this public inquiry into the News of the World is essential. It has the potential to change the very structure of the media industry and its accountability systems. We can learn from this. I hope that the term ‘news-hack’ will not hang over our future press. I hope that one day the public will trust journalists to provide information but to also maintain the quality of that information.
Rupert Murdoch and co. are finding themselves in a media whirlwind but for once, not the sort they expected. How has it come to this? How has a media giant like News International found itself fighting for its reputation?
In March 2003, the relationship between the Police and the media was questioned. Rebekah Brooks admitted to a Commons Select Committee that News of the World journalists had paid the police to obtain information for them. Coulson told the committee that the News of the World obtained the information within law and journalism ethics and only obtained information in this way if it was in the public interest.
In April 2005, private investigator, Steve Whittamore was jailed after breaching the Data Protection Act 1998. He was paid to illegally obtain information about celebrities and public figures. Police obtained information from his home which indicated that 300 journalists had asked Whittamore to obtain information from confidential databases on more than 13,000 occasions.
Two years later, News of the World Royal correspondent, Clive Goodman and private investigator, Glenn Mulcaire were sentenced to jail for illegally hacking into the phones of the Royal family.
Four years on, the News of World is no more. The Murdochs have closed down the long standing newspaper due to the new evidence that has emerged. Hacking into the voicemail messages of murdered school girl, Milly Dowler, was the final nail in the coffin for the title.
Some believe that the lack of evidence made public in the 2007 investigation is an indication of the Police’s close relations with the press.
Journalists have the power to decide what angle to tell a story in. Therefore, my theory is that the Police probably wanted to look as if they did something about the scandal but didn’t divulge the true extent of it, in order to maintain a good relationship with the press. I also think that some politicians follow suit.
The bottom line is that it’s illegal to intercept voicemail messages under Section 1 of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA). However, how has such criminality entered into this profession? My theory is that it has always been there but News Corp has just got caught in the act. I’m not saying that all journalists would take the same measures to get a story but I believe many have went to similar lengths in the past. An anonymous source told the Guardian-
"I'm damn sure if we'd had mobiles when I was on the road we'd have been listening in...After all, we got up to every other trick in the book. And don't go on about that public interest nonsense. We did what we did because the desk was always on our backs to get the story. “(Anonymous, Guardian)
Journalists are increasingly faced with the pressure of commercialisation. They are put under pressure to get a ‘juicy’ front page spread in order to bring in more readers and revenue. However, if anything, News Corp has taught us that ethics need to come first.
Investigative journalism involves uncovering wrong-doing through original research about something which a person or organisation is trying to keep a secret. It's the type of journalism that tends to dig out information, by any means necessary but for the right reasons. The ends have to justify the means. The story has to be in the public interest. It seems to me that the News of the World carried out a lot of fishing expeditions rather than hard-hitting journalism. The real danger is that there seems to be varying degrees in opinion, in terms of what journalists would find to be acceptable conduct.
The way of maintaining ethical principles is through journalism guidelines and this need is reflected in the many regulatory bodies that exist (the Press Complaints Commission, Ofcom and the National Union of Journalists). However, the powers of these regulatory bodies need to be revised. Many of the regulators don’t have strict enough punishments for journalists who step over the mark. That is why this public inquiry into the News of the World is essential. It has the potential to change the very structure of the media industry and its accountability systems. We can learn from this. I hope that the term ‘news-hack’ will not hang over our future press. I hope that one day the public will trust journalists to provide information but to also maintain the quality of that information.
Great post!
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