Appointment is a watershed for Irish press

THE announcement yesterday that the media academic Professor John Horgan is to become Ireland’s first press ombudsman was a watershed moment for the Irish press, for freedom of expression and — most importantly — for the maturing of relationships between newspapers and their reading public.

Prof Horgan will be a popular appointment. His own roots are very much of the fourth estate, having started his career as a reporter with the Irish Press in the early 1960s. However, his working life has also straddled politics (he was a Labour Party senator, TD and MEP during the 1970s) and academia — he has been associated with Dublin City University’s highly regarded journalism and media school since the early 1980s.

The decision by the independent Press Council of Ireland — and in turn by all facets of the newspaper industry — is a proactive move that will be portrayed by some in the media as putting the cart before the horse.

The establishment of a press council by the industry and the creation of a press ombudsman were part of a wider deal whereby the Government, in turn, would reform the badly outdated defamation laws.

Indeed, the press industry’s own steering committee stressed that: “All discussion with the Minister for Justice (then former Tánaiste Michael McDowell) were based on the premise that a Press Council (and a press ombudsman) could not operate in Ireland without substantial reform of the defamation laws.”

The problem, politically, is this: while the new Defamation Bill was introduced in the Seanad, it has not yet become law. And the attitude adopted by the new Justice Minister, Brian Lenihan, could be very different to that of Michael McDowell, who railroaded the legislation through Cabinet despite some stiff opposition from Fianna Fáil ministers Brian Cowen, Noel Dempsey and Martin Cullen.

So in a sense, the decision by the Press Council of Ireland to press ahead with the appointment of Prof Horgan is an act of faith. Council chairman Professor Thomas Mitchell points out that freedom of the press cannot be absolute.

“It is bounded by the obligation to reflect the rights of individuals and have regard for the public welfare. It is important that there should be a system of accountability to guard against abuses of a freedom that is fundamental, but that carries responsibilities as well as rights.”

Ombudsman positions, held by the likes of Emily O’Reilly here, or police ombudsman Nuala O’Loan in the North, have proved hugely popular with the public. If they have problems or difficulties or feel they have been wronged, the office of the ombudsman has provided a direct conduit for their complaints.

There is no reason to believe that it will be any different with Prof Horgan.

As Frank Cullen of the National Newspapers of Ireland noted yesterday: “The appointment of a press ombudsman finally gives the public the opportunity to complain about a newspaper or magazine without having to go to court.

“The financial risk attached to pursuing legal action meant that many people have been reluctant to make a complaint against the press, even when they were genuinely aggrieved. Happily, that is no longer the case.”

Prof Horgan himself remarked: “My appointment demonstrates the industry’s commitment to providing an independent, effective and responsive structure for handling complaints against newspapers by members of the public.”

Attention will now turn to the Government to speedily deliver its side of the promise.