State Media and Scrutiny (2)

In part two of this in-depth interview with Scrutiny Sub Panel (Parliamentary Select Committee) Chairman, Deputy Trevor Pitman, we remain on the subject of Jersey’s State Media and the Report’s damming findings concerning the latter.

Experience has taught us that Jersey’s State Media will bury this Report because it appears to vindicate Former Senior Investigating Officer and Deputy Chief Officer Lenny Harper as well as Former Chief Police Officer Graham Power QPM. The Sub Panel’s Report turns the spotlight onto the media’s role and how the public appears to have been misled by them (State Media).

The AWARD WINNING Channel Television and Jersey’s only “News”paper, the Jersey Evening Post, probably come out the worst in this Report but the man who took over the Historic Child Abuse Enquiry “Mick Gradwell” comes a close second if he doesn’t beat them.

Mick Gradwell, it is reported, was leaking confidential information during a live Child Abuse investigation, to a “journalist” with a history of supporting convicted paedophiles and still none of our State Media have asked “why?”

Below are some of the key findings of the Sub Panel’s Report concerning the media, of which we will be taking an even closer look at in the coming days.

The Scrutiny Sub Panel's Report can, and should be, read in it's entirety HERE.

Selected extracts from the Report.

247. In each of the above cases neither of the media organisations appeared to undertake any critical analysis of their own of the information they had received. This feeds into the perception by a number of observers that the media has allowed itself to focus on alleged failures in police procedures rather than their attempts to investigate instances of child abuse which had been allowed to continue without effective challenge for many years.

248. The Island has been heavily polarised in regard to the conduct of the Historical Child Abuse Enquiry.  The majority of the members of the public form their views on the basis of media reporting of these issues and we believe it is of paramount importance that the media strive to deal with issues of this magnitude with the highest standards of objectivity. Broadcast media have a special responsibility to use the few words that they have carefully in order to avoid false impressions being left in the minds of the public.

249. We note that parliamentary scrutiny in the UK is also attempting to grapple with difficult issues regarding media reporting. Here in Jersey there are particular issues with regard to the provision of objective reporting due to the limited number of local media organisations. We believe that it is essential that the Chairmen’s Committee give serious consideration to establishing a Scrutiny Panel which could undertake a review which will look specifically at the kind of issues we have identified in this report.

Key Findings

·      The emphasis on alleged misuse of taxpayers’ money in instances of media reporting risks implanting the impression in the public mind that the entire expenditure on Operation Rectangle was badly managed.

·      In our hearing with him on 25^th August 2011, the Minister was sympathetic to our concerns about the way negative messages about Mr. Power and Mr Harper had been spun in the media and he offered to make a joint statement to this effect with the Sub-Panel. We believe that this would be a positive step.

• Our primary concern about the premature leaking of details of the review of financial management relates to issues of fairness in the way these leaks are reported in the media without an adequate opportunity for an alternative perspective to be considered.
• It is essential that a future Scrutiny Panel give serious consideration to undertaking a review which will look specifically at the kind of issues we have identified in this report.

Recommendation

·      The Chairman’s Committee should establish broadly-based Scrutiny Panel to undertake a review to examine issues relating to the media coverage which we have raised in our report.


Part one of this interview can be viewed HERE


We will once again leave the final word to the Former Chief Police Officer, Graham Power QPM, who reminds us (unlike the State Media) that this is/should be about Child Abuse and how it was able to continue for decades in Jersey's State run Institutions............ And in all that time (DECADES) not one of the victims, out of sheer desperation, took their plight to ANY of the State Media?

"The attempts to divert this debate into discussions concerning the trivia of expense claims, is a scandal of which all involved should be thoroughly ashamed." Graham Power QPM.