Madeleine McCann's Father Calls for Stricter Media Regulation Following Accounts of Press "Tormenting".

Gerry McCann, father to Madeleine McCann has demanded increased oversight for the UK media, detailing how being "monstered" by the press made him feel like he was being "drowning under the pressure".

The McCanns Subjected to Press "Abuses"

According to Gerry McCann, his family was subjected to press "excesses" and that the media had "consistently hampered" the search for answers regarding his daughter's 2007 disappearance.

He noted that the intrusion took a "huge toll" on his family. "We endured sustained interest and inaccurate reports for many months that forced us to take legal action to stop it," he explained.

"We were fortunate. We got through it. We received incredible backing. But I can promise you, there were times where I felt like I was drowning, and it was the media, primarily, not the situation we were in," he stated.

A Call to Revive Press Regulation Review

The McCanns are among more than 30 people who have signed a letter calling on ministers to reopen the second phase of the Leveson inquiry, which was due to examine the dynamic between the media and the police.

He expressed that it was unacceptable that after more than a year, press regulation was "off the agenda". He described how his family had been victims of "relentless targeting" by parts of the media and that the press was "camped" outside his home for an extended period after Madeleine went missing.

Recounting the Intrusion

Recalling the harassment, he said: "Media at our doorstep, photographers literally ramming their cameras against our car window, when we had our toddler twins in the back who were frightened, and how distressing that is for you as a parent."

"It's the half-truths. It's the making up of stories to fit the agenda, rather than reality, which causes immense harm," he added.

The Need for Stronger Regulation and Redress

He stated these actions highlighted why there needed to be more robust press regulation. "We'd be getting ready for bed, we'd put on the news, and there'd be front-page headlines about ourselves and unverified claims," he said.

"That can drag you down, and you can see how people succumb to it and think they can't get out of it. The impact is devastating, and we need that protection. People deserve recourse. And at the minute, for most of the major publishers, there is little accountability," he asserted.

Official Response and Evolving News Environment

The Culture Secretary stated that a second phase of the inquiry had been discounted and that the media landscape was now very different.

"Our position aligns that the situation has changed dramatically since the Leveson's second phase was recommended: the public is now more likely to get their news from diverse digital platforms, which has thrown up new and different challenges," they stated.

They added that weighing the needs of those affected with the need for a free press was a "challenging task to get right," but acknowledged that "reform is required in this area".

A Continued Search for Answers

Madeleine McCann disappeared from a family vacation apartment in 2007 as a three-year-old. Gerry McCann said that it was "deeply disturbing" how the press had consistently meddled with the investigation.

"Leaked information which should have been confidential... This meant a potential culprit, you knew far more than you should have done," he said.

On the prospect of finding Madeleine, he said the hope he would find his daughter was "slim but it's not extinguished". "Our wish is to find her alive, but we need to establish the facts and see justice served, and others are at risk while that person is free," he concluded.