The McCann family Parent Calls for Tougher Media Oversight Amid Accounts of Press "Hounding".

The father of Madeleine McCann has issued a call for increased scrutiny of the UK media, describing how sustained media attention made him feel as if he was being "suffocated and buried".

The McCanns Tormented by Press "Abuses"

Gerry McCann stated that his family was deeply affected by press "excesses" and that the media had "frequently disrupted" the search for answers regarding his daughter's going missing in 2007.

He stated that the intrusion took a "heavy burden" on his family. "We had sustained interest and misleading headlines for 15 months or more that compelled us to take legal action to stop it," he explained.

"We were fortunate. We survived. We received incredible backing. Yet, I must tell you, there were times where I felt like I was overwhelmed, and it was the media, mainly, not the situation we were in," he reflected.

A Call to Restart Press Regulation Review

The McCanns are among dozens of individuals who have signed a letter calling on the government to reopen the second phase of the Leveson inquiry, which was intended to examine the links between the media and the police.

McCann said it was not acceptable that over a year later, press regulation was "off the agenda". He described how his family had been subjected to "monstering" by certain the media and that the press was "posted" outside his home for an extended period after the disappearance.

Describing the Harassment

Recalling the harassment, he said: "Reporters arriving at our home, cameras being shoved their cameras against our car window, when we had young twin children in the back who were scared, and how distressing that is for you as a parent."

"It's the half-truths. It's the fabrication of stories to suit a narrative, rather than the facts, which causes immense harm," he stated.

A Demand for Tougher Regulation and Accountability

He stated these actions highlighted why there needed to be more robust press regulation. "At night, as we prepared 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 give in to it and think they can't get out of it. It's so damaging, 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 Position and Evolving Media Landscape

The Culture Secretary said that a follow-up part of the inquiry had been rejected and that the news environment was now profoundly changed.

"Our position aligns that the landscape has transformed significantly from the time the Leveson's second phase was proposed: the public is now more likely to get their news from the internet, which has thrown up new and different challenges," they explained.

They added that balancing the needs of those affected with the principle of press freedom was a "complex balance to get right," but recognized that "reform is required in this area".

A Continued Hope for Closure

The child went missing from a family vacation apartment in 2007 as a three-year-old. Gerry McCann said that it was "profoundly disappointing" how the press had repeatedly interfered with the investigation.

"Leaked information which should have been confidential... So if you were the perpetrator, you knew much more than you should have done," he explained.

Regarding the ongoing search, he said the chance he would find his daughter was "small but still alive". "Our wish is to find her alive, but we need to find out what happened and see justice served, and people are at risk while that person is free," he stated.