So Max Mosley won his court case against the News Of The World and is now going to sue for libel. Good for him! The media needs to be held to account much more often than it is.
I don’t particularly approve of Mosley’s actions but if he wants to take part in an orgy with other consenting adults that is his business. Such behaviour may disgust some, excite others and set many a moral compass spinning but it is not a matter of public interest, even if the media and shallower members of the public find it vicariously thrilling – what sad lives they must lead!
As for Lord Carey mounting his high horse and blathering about how Mosley’s victory sets a “dangerous precedent” and how “a case can be clearly made for a direct link between private behaviour and public conduct”, well, I don’t think anyone was questioning Mosley’s ability to do his job before news of his private conduct hit the headlines. Whether they were or not, the link Lord Carey mentions may well exist but that does not mean that everyone who privately does something that may be considered morally dubious is incapable of discharging their public duties properly and effectively. We all do foolish things privately, some of us do them publicly, but that does not make us incompetent – just human.
Lord Carey also considers this ruling to be damaging to free speech and that it will restrain the efforts of investigative journalism. I really don’t think he has a clue what he is talking about! He seems to be suggesting the press can say whatever they like under the guise of free speech – even if what they say is factually incorrect. One reason for the ruling going in Mosley’s favour was that the press said he attended a Nazi themed orgy when it was actually an S&M orgy. So clearly the press did not report the facts and therefore claims of free speech are irrelevant – free speech does not give you the right to lie about someone however insulted you may be by their behaviour.
What about Lord Carey’s concerns over the impact this ruling has on investigative journalism? Well, first thing to note is that this case does not by any stretch of anyone’s imagination fall within the realm of investigative journalism. It is nothing more than tabloid titillation geared to create a sensation, make headlines and sell copies by appealing to the baser aspect of human nature. I’m pretty sure that serious investigative journalists will have nothing to fear from this ruling as they task themselves with discovering genuine acts of fraud, abuse, misuse of public funds, malpractice, etc., not this kind of kiss-and-tell guff!
I hope that Max Mosley succeeds in any libel action that he pursues. He, and anyone else that is illuminated by the spotlight of celebrity, is entitled to have his privacy protected. If it becomes necessary to invade that privacy then it should only be so that the truth can be told.
I wish people like Lord Carey would just keep quiet. I see him as something of a hypocrite and, given the actions of some Chruch of England clergymen (such as this and this) and the manner in which such actions have been kept quiet, consider it inappropriate for him to use his position to act as a moral watchdog.
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