0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.
Newspapers are considering their next move after the government published a royal charter aimed at underpinning self-regulation of the press.An industry steering group said it did not address newspapers' fundamental objections about political involvement.One newspaper source told the BBC there was a "realistic prospect" of the industry taking legal action after its own proposals were rejected.The government said the charter would safeguard freedom of the press.Independent, self-regulation is being brought in after recommendations by the Leveson Inquiry.The inquiry into press ethics and practices was set up amid public and political anger at the extent of phone hacking by journalists, first exposed when it emerged that the now-closed News of the World had accessed the voicemail messages of murdered teenager Milly Dowler.The industry steering group, which represents national, regional and local newspaper publishers, said the royal charter unveiled on Friday was not "voluntary or independent"."This remains a charter written by politicians, imposed by politicians and controlled by politicians," the group said."It has not been approved by any of the newspapers or magazines it seeks to regulate."But the group said it would look closely at changes agreed by the three main political parties at Westminster to try to make the charter more acceptable to the industry.BBC political correspondent Ross Hawkins reported that a newspaper source said an application for judicial review was possible but no decision had been made.Any such attempt would question the process that the Privy Council - a body, mostly made up of senior politicians, that advises the Queen - used to reject the newspaper industry's own proposals for a royal charter earlier this week.
