Madeleine McCann's Parent Urges Stronger Press Oversight Following Accounts of Media "Tormenting".

Gerry McCann, father to Madeleine McCann has demanded greater scrutiny of the UK media, detailing how being "monstered" by the press made him feel as if he was being "suffocated and buried".

A Family Tormented by Press "Abuses"

According to Gerry McCann, his family was deeply affected by press "intrusions" and that the media had "consistently hampered" the investigation into his daughter's going missing in 2007.

He stated that the media attention exacted a "huge toll" on his family. "We endured ongoing coverage and inaccurate reports for 15 months or more that led us to take legal action to stop it," he explained.

"We were fortunate. We survived. We received incredible backing. But I can promise you, there were times where I felt like I was overwhelmed, and it was the media, mostly, not the situation we were in," he recounted.

A Call to Revive Leveson Inquiry

McCann and his wife, Kate, are among more than 30 people who have put their names to a letter asking ministers to reopen the second phase of the Leveson investigation, which was set up to look into the links between the media and the police.

He expressed that it was unacceptable that more than a year on, press regulation was "not being prioritized". He said that his family had been endured "relentless targeting" by certain the media and that the press was "stationed" outside his home for months after Madeleine went missing.

Recounting the Harassment

Detailing the events, he said: "Media at our doorstep, photographers pushing their cameras against our car window, when we had our toddler twins in the back who were terrified, and how distressing that is for you as a parent."

"It's the half-truths. It's the invention of stories to suit a narrative, rather than the facts, which ruins lives," he added.

A Demand for Tougher Oversight and Redress

He argued this behavior showed 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 splash stories about ourselves and alleged events," he told.

"That almost pulls you under, and you can see how people are broken by it and think they can't get out of it. It's so damaging, and we need that protection. There must be accountability. And at the minute, for most of these mainstream media, there is little accountability," he argued.

Official Response and Changing News Environment

The Culture Secretary stated that a follow-up part of the inquiry had been discounted and that the media landscape was now very different.

"We share the view that the landscape has transformed profoundly since the Leveson's second phase was proposed: the public is now more likely to get their news online from a whole variety of sources, which has thrown up new and different challenges," they explained.

The minister further stated that balancing the needs of those affected with the need for a free press was a "challenging task to get right," but acknowledged that "action is needed in this area".

An Enduring Hope for Answers

Madeleine McCann disappeared from a Portuguese holiday resort in 2007 as a three-year-old. Her father expressed that it was "profoundly disappointing" how the press had consistently meddled with the investigation.

"Leaked information which was meant for police only... So if you were the perpetrator, you knew far more than you should have done," he noted.

On the prospect of finding Madeleine, he said the chance he would find his daughter was "slim but it's not extinguished". "I'd love to find her alive, but we need to find out what happened and see justice served, and people are at risk while that perpetrator is free," he affirmed.