Queen approves rules to curb media abuses
LONDON — A new plan to regulate the British press as a result of the phonehacking scandal was signed by Queen Elizabeth II on Wednesday despite the objections of publishers who sought a court order to block any such measures.
The royal charter approved by the queen and the nation’s major political parties calls for the creation of a watchdog group designed to curb abuses by journalists revealed by the scandal. The practices include listening to the voice mails of crime victims, celebrities, royal family members and others, such as employees or relatives of people in the news.
But members of the news media are not obligated to sign the charter, and many remain opposed to any restrictions on freedom of the press.
“It’s the end of 300 years of press freedom if you’ve got politicians deciding to judge how stiff the standards of regulation are,” Roger Alton, editor of The Times, told the BBC.
Lawyers representing publishers said in court that politicians did not give proper consideration to other proposals.
The new charter is the culmination of two years of police investigation and public inquiries after the phone-hacking scandal.
The developments coincided with the trial in Lon- don of several former News Corp. executives and journalists, all facing charges related to phone hacking. News Corp. is owned by Rupert Murdoch.
A prosecutor told the court that three former journalists with the now defunct News of the World and a private investigator used by journalists had already pleaded guilty.