Can the Guardian respond to the NOTW’s challenge?
What do we think of the paper’s emphatic defence?
There’s a furious response in the News of the World to Thursday’s story in the Guardian about the actions of NOTW journalists.
The paper denies the allegations in very strong terms and then focuses its fire on the Guardian itself.
“….So let us remember that it was the Guardian that knowingly, deliberately and illegally forged a cabinet minister’s signature to get an exclusive story.
It was the Guardian that cynically abandoned one of journalism’s most fundamental and sacred covenants by revealing the identity of a confidential informant.
As a result of that betrayal, a Foreign Office civil servant – a 23-year-old woman – was sent to prison.
So, if the Guardian has any fresh evidence to support their claims against us, we invite them to pass it on to the police without delay.
Yesterday, in their editorial column, they proclaimed: “Decent journalism has never been more necessary . . . ”
We couldn’t agree more. It’s time they practised what they preach.
It’s got to a stage where both of the papers cannot be right – but which one? My initial reaction was that the Guardian might have over-sold its story by using the figures from the Information Commission report which covered a wide range of newspapers including the Guardian’s stable-mate the Observer. Has it? We’ll see.