New York, November 29, 2012–The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply concerned by recommendations to adopt government regulation of the press resulting from the United Kingdom’s Leveson inquiry report issued today.
“A media regulatory body anchored by statute cannot be described as voluntary,” said CPJ Executive Director, Joel Simon. “Moreover, adopting statutory regulation would undermine press freedom in the U.K. and give legitimacy to governments around the world that routinely silence journalists through such controls.”
The Leveson inquiry is a public investigation into the power dynamics between the public, politicians, the police and the media in the United Kingdom. The inquiry led by Lord Justice Brian Leveson issued recommendations today on how the press should be reformed.