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When is a journalist a “commercial observer”?

The Conservatives are in town – that’s if your town is Birmingham. They are relatively frequent visitors to the Midlands and a few years ago, with a confirmed commission, I applied for media accreditation to cover the conference. My application was denied. The reason that was given was that I was not representing a national publication […]

Will you pray for the media?

What do you think of when somebody says “the media”? For most people, the term is synonymous with “Fleet Street” – the eponymous collective of scribes, hacks, journalists, reporters, photographers, snappers – whatever you want to call us, that write or take pictures for newspapers. Whenever I deliver media training, I always try to dissuade the participants from talking […]

Government-owned Student Loans Company issues spurious legal threat to press

On Monday 28th May 2012, former Prime Minister Tony Blair was giving evidence to the Leveson Inquiry into the press. Over the course of that week a number of cabinet ministers gave evidence: Theresa May, Michael Gove, Vince Cable, Kenneth Clarke and Jeremy Hunt. It followed a sensational week of evidence from a succession of […]

The Leveson Inquiry Report – Live Blog

The Leveson Inquiry into the Culture, Practice and Ethics of the Press Live-Blog: Please publicise http://drakene.ws/leveson-report. 1701 The Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister and Leader of the Opposition are now meeting for talks aimed at building a consensus approach to the Leveson Inquiry Report and its recommendations; ahead a general debate on the Report in the […]