Hear that? It's the court-ordered silence around the reporting of the case of the 'youngest dad in Britain'. As anyone looking at Google News will know, there have been significant developments about this case today. But I'm not enough of an expert to know what can and can't be said here...
But it does seem ridiculous when American, Australian, Indian papers can report it and they can be easily found online. How does a court order work in the internet age? Because it doesn't seem to at all. (It seems the Mirror did print this story, but have removed it from their website, although it still can be found in a Google search!)
As I mentioned on this blog before, the story didn't feel right from the start and The Sun were ridiculously stupid for running the story in the first place without proper fact-checking. They have been complicit in exploiting this child and that is totally unforgivable. But they've got the most popular website of any newspaper now, so I bet they don't give a toss.
And as for the PCC investigation - what is that going to come up with? Another slap on the wrists for The Sun. Well, that'll learn 'em.
It will be good to look at all those columnists who threw up their hands in horror at the original story and highlight how ridiculous they all sound now.
And of course Max Clifford was involved. I know he is deemed beyond criticism these days because of his work with St Jade of Goody. But serious questions need to be asked about how the newspapers bow and scrape to his every whim.
I imagine there will be no apology from Melanie Phillips who used the story as evidence that the entire youth of the UK was doomed thanks to the sex-mad liberals.
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