Its all about public interest

Later today the Leveson Report is to be published and its detail will, undoubtedly be poured over for some time. To be sure, it's a devilishly difficult issue and anyone who says it is 'simple' is lying. There is a huge temptation to bring in draconian controls simply because much of the print media is out of control. I am tempted to believe that the print media is actually dying out anyway, so that particular problem will solve itself. The gutter journalists will lose their jobs and no doubt work for private investigators where they can be regulated by law without any civil liberties issues interfering. The focus will then have to shift to web and social media generally and whether or how to regulate that. We have already seen the first warning shots with the McAlpine Affair and a number of other unpleasant twitter campaigns. You can't regulate gossip so that will be a tough one. In the meantime, what to do ? The key seems to lie with the issue of what is, or is not, in the 'public interest. There are clear examples either way. The Milly Dowler incident was clearly not in the public interest. Issues concerning MPs' expenses or Jimmy Savile clearly were. It is cases in between these that are hard to judge. For example was the revelation of Harry's games in Las Vegas in the public interest ? (I know it was not a press revelation, but the principle applies). Then, of course, there are the private lives of politicians and public servants in general - come to think of it, who are 'public servants' ? Are school headteachers, heads of broadcasting organisations, newspaper editors 'pubic servants' ? They are certainly engaged in public business, whether or not they are employed by the state. The recent Petraus issue in the USA is a case in point. His private life was clearly a matter of public interest because he handles intelligence and security matters, but what if he were just another four star general ? So, whatever Leveson proposes, and whatever the government tries to introduce, I think a workable (it can never be watertight) definition of 'public interest' must be the keystone of any system.