Back-door raiders

Abstract

The freedom of the media in Britain has been suffering erosion over the past few months, some of it from politicians, some from the courts, and some of it self-inflicted. There may be an indication of the way the heads of the judiciary are thinking in what one of the Law Lords, Baroness Hale, said in October: "The public only have a right to be told if two conditions are fulfilled. First, there must be a real public interest in communicating and receiving the information. This is, as we all know, very different from saying that it is information that interests the public - the most vapid tittle-tattle about the activities of footballers' wives and girlfriends interests large sections of the public but no-one could claim any real public interest in our being told all about it." For "footballers' wives and girlfriends", read anyone in the public eye who wants that eye to be blinded whenever an unwelcome spotlight is trained upon nefarious, ill-judged or plain stupid activity in which they may be engaged. The media must fight its corner to resist both legislation and judge-made law on privacy. Those intent on curtailing media freedom are not gathering quietly to sneak in through the back door. Watch out for a sledgehammer.