Why Kate and Gerry McCann are no longer afraid of the British press

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/nov/23/leveson-inquiry-kate-gerry-mccann?CMP=twt_fd

Why Kate and Gerry McCann are no longer afraid of the British press

What kind of people would accuse them of 'selling' a daughter? Esther Addley hears the couple's shaming testimony



Esther Addley
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 23 November 2011 19.49 GMT




Some people are frightened of the British media. Sheryl Gascoigne, a woman who 15 years ago contracted a brief marriage to Britain's best-loved footballer until she tired of his drunken beatings and left him, confessed to the Leveson inquiry on Wednesday that she was "scared of the repercussions" even of appearing before it, and of the fury she might call down on her children by giving evidence about crawling on the carpet of her living room to avoid being photographed through the curtains.

Kate and Gerry McCann, on the other hand, do not appear to be afraid of the press. What, after all, is it going to do to them? Accuse them of killing their three-year-old daughter Madeleine and transporting her corpse in their hire car? They've done that already, many times over. Report that they were undergoing IVF to get a "new" child to "replace" Madeleine? Done that too.

Suggest they were taking part in orgies and swingers' parties? That they had kept Madeleine's body in their freezer after murdering her? That they had sold their daughter into slavery to pay off family debts? They've seen it all before. Each one of those allegations appeared in a British newspaper in the months after this ordinary couple from rural Leicestershire became the victims of the most terrible crime any parent can imagine, the kidnap of their child.

Among the sorry litany of grievances outlined by the McCanns on Wednesday was a complaint about the way images of them, often obtained by photographers leaping out to startle them, had been "distorted" to fit a desired description of them as "frail" or "fragile".

And so I won't describe them as fragile, though both spoke in low voices and Mrs McCann, in particular, appeared bruised by the experience. It seems inappropriate in any case, since having survived that kind of onslaught they are evidently made of formidable stuff – or perhaps they have simply found no alternative than to doggedly continue.

But after four and a half years of hunting, at times almost alone, for a lost little girl, taking savage blows to their reputations along the way, they seemed pale and pained, badly beaten up. After a verbatim transcript of Kate McCann's personal diary was reproduced in the News of the World in September 2008, she felt, she said, "like climbing into a hole and not coming out, because I just felt so worthless that we would be treated like that". (The paper's news editor, incidentally, had told the McCanns' representative earlier in the week that it would be publishing a "supportive" piece that weekend.)

Perhaps the most appalling aspect of the McCanns' testimony, in which they relived what has a good claim to be the British media's most ignoble and shaming episode of recent times, is that little of this is new. Millions read the articles in question; plenty, too (though considerably fewer) will have seen grovelling apologies by some of the papers that published them, admitting that there was and remains absolutely no evidence that the child's disappearance was anything other than a terrible crime, the kidnap by a stranger.

And yet, for all that was familiar, the McCanns have not given evidence to a court or inquiry before, so some of the details they had to share of their backroom dealings with the media were new, and as edifying as you might expect. This was the first occasion, for example, on which they have told how an "irate" Colin Myler, then editor of the News of the World, personally telephoned them to "berate" them for granting an interview to Hello! to publicise a child safety campaign. They found themselves apologising to Myler, and, "beaten into submission", agreeing to an interview with his paper.

Nor was it widely known that when the couple finally decided to sue the publishers of the Daily Express, Sunday Express and Daily Star, their behind-the-scenes efforts to avoid legal action having been met with such headlines as "Maddy 'sold' by hard-up McCanns", they were told by the group's lawyers that it would not apologise, but if they liked it would grant them an interview with OK! magazine. Express Newspapers eventually paid £550,000 to the Find Madeleine fund and published apologies. "They were on the front page," said Mr McCann. "We insisted."

The couple sat closely, shooting glances at each other from time to time. The sleeve of Mrs McCann's cardigan was rolled up, her husband's cuff pulled back as he frequently raised a glass of water to his mouth. Both were wearing on their right wrists the green and yellow cuffs they have sported since their daughter's disappearance, reflecting the colours used in Portugal and Britain to commemorate the missing. Remember Madeleine.

Thanks Annabel. Let's hope the press have a few boxes of material ready for when the truth finally emerges!

http://news.sky.com/home/uk-news/media-gallery/16116573

Look at the headline above the photo of Kate and Gerry!

AnnaEsse wrote:http://news.sky.com/home/uk-news/media-gallery/16116573

Look at the headline above the photo of Kate and Gerry!

Thats excellent.There have been so many of those 'headlines' subliminal messages it make me convinced the papers just cant wait to get their teeth into the repugnant pair.

What a repugnant pair they are and still sneering.....

I feel sure that Editors must be aware that they can manipulate the juxtaposition of Headlines and other seemingly unrelated material to good effect, rather than relying upon eagle-eyed punters to point it out. Pity it isn't a widespread feature of McCoverage!

The End Is Nigh wrote:I feel sure that Editors must be aware that they can manipulate the juxtaposition of Headlines and other seemingly unrelated material to good effect, rather than relying upon eagle-eyed punters to point it out. Pity it isn't a widespread feature of McCoverage!

Yes, I'm sure it's deliberate. We've had a few of those in the past and I'm sure that some of our members will recall what they were.

Here's another...



My comment on twitter was... If only.

They honestly think that TIME(NOT THE MAGAZINE !) has passed and we All believe their "story". Anyway why should they be scared- the case is Portugese not UK. And they have most expensive Lawyers paid to protect them !!..... Oh I do SO hope they trip themselves up in their craveing for glory.Surely the Press money orientated as it is must have LOADS of info it could share... Pride comes before a fall-Kate and Gerry.

Both were wearing on their right wrists the green and yellow cuffs they have sported since their daughter's disappearance, reflecting the colours used in Portugal and Britain to commemorate the missing. Remember Madeleine.


Does anyone know this for certain? How do we know that they wear them all the time. I think they drag them out when a public appearance is called for.

I'm surprised that poor old Cuddlecat wasn't being carted around as usual!

Not Born Yesterday wrote:I'm surprised that poor old Cuddlecat wasn't being carted around as usual!

I think poor Cuddle Cat has been abducted just in case a couple of passing dogs show an interest! Woof woof!

Tisk tisk, we all know how notoriously unreliable the dogs are!!

I wasn't on here as was on twitter last night.

I would say that at least 80% of people who were on there and used the McCann word (not the hashtag) were critical of the McCanns and only a very small percentage were totally in support of them (eg Poor Kate & Gerry what they have suffered at the hands of the big bad press).

TBH most just wished they'd shut up. Left kids alone and never out of the press (people aren't stupid even if the media & politicians might like us to be.

I don't think one need claim any particular knowledge of, or expertise in, body language in order to establish which of those two pulls the strings. All the power is concentrated in one obnoxious person.

Seeing Healy yesterday engendered for the very first time a soupcon of sympathy because whatever her role in the initial stages of this affair it seems crystal clear that she has had little or no influence on subsequent events and is beholden to the career and social standing of McCann.

The cynical might think that the latter cares little about Healy, or indeed about Madeleine, but has to keep Healy on the shortest possible leash.

But she serioulsy looked to be at breaking point and I hope she has the guts and character to unburden herself - the consequences of proper Justice are surely going to be less damaging than the consequences of continuing to feed one man's ego.

The End Is Nigh wrote:I don't think one need claim any particular knowledge of, or expertise in, body language in order to establish which of those two pulls the strings. All the power is concentrated in one obnoxious person.

Seeing Healy yesterday engendered for the very first time a soupcon of sympathy because whatever her role in the initial stages of this affair it seems crystal clear that she has had little or no influence on subsequent events and is beholden to the career and social standing of McCann.

The cynical might think that the latter cares little about Healy, or indeed about Madeleine, but has to keep Healy on the shortest possible leash.

But she serioulsy looked to be at breaking point and I hope she has the guts and character to unburden herself - the consequences of proper Justice are surely going to be less damaging than the consequences of continuing to feed one man's ego.

i have to admit i thought she looked ill or that she was under sedation she looked totally out of it and she looked like she was thinking how the hell did it come to this

I think the opposite. Kate McCann is a consumate liar .... she is the great manipulator in my humble opinion. It has always been about protecting mad kate.

Interesting!

Not a thought that had crossed my mind especially, but I shan't attempt to counter it as my own opinion is clear enough.

Would be interested in a few more "who wears the trousers" comments, though (Maybe a new Thread?).