Press Regulation: Most Liberals Still Don't Know What To Think

Most Liberals 'Still Confused' Over Press Regulation
|

A new survey has found that 90% of liberal people still don't know what their position is on the post-Leveson plan for a royal charter regulating the press.

"I always thought it was the phone-hacking victims who mattered most - but now I'm thinking that the press should have been consulted, too," said one. "I hate the fact that the papers are owned by people like Murdoch, but I also feel a bit sorry for them. It's all so confusing. And it's killing me to not have a strong opinion."

"The Independent has agreed to the charter while The Sun, Daily Mail and The Spectator are all against it - so I thought I knew what my stance was," said another liberal. "But now I hear that The Guardian and New Statesman are opposed to it, too, so I'm all over the place."

What doesn't help, say liberals, is that every party leader is claiming victory. "Normally, I'd just agree with Ed Milliband and oppose anything Cameron and Clegg do," one told us. "They all agreed to this, though - so I don't know what to think. If only it was easily divided along party lines."

Open Image Modal

Hacked off? Most liberals are simply confused

Personalities have also had a part to play in the confusion. "I used to think Hugh Grant was just a posh celebrity tosser, but when he led the Hacked Off campaign, I thought he was really cool," one liberal admitted. "Now he just seems like a bit of a wanker again."

Another adds: "I've always supported Hacked Off, but then I saw Ian Hislop on the telly the other day saying that the new plans were a load of nonsense. What am I supposed to think now? I love Private Eye!"

Many liberals admit that they don't even know what the new proposals fully entail. Comments by David Cameron like “It is legislation to protect the royal charter, it is not legislation to recognise the royal charter” and the use of words like "statutory underpinning" and "Rubicon" haven't helped - and nor has confusion over online publishing.

"Don't even ask me what we should do about websites, bloggers and Twitter," one liberal told us. "The whole business is all too nuanced. I've got not f**king clue."