Stuffing

Jeremy Paxman's written statement to Leveson is generally sharp and to the point. Here's a couple of extracts.

Q: 7. Would you distinguish between the press and other media for these purposes? If so, please explain how, and why.

7.1 It is striking that this inquiry is into the working of the press, rather than the electronic media. Broadcasters operate under rules and conventions and while the distinction between the electronic media and the press is increasingly blurred (websites and the like) some of the historic tension lingers.

7.2 The word in broadcasting is ’impartiality’. I have always had a problem with this, because it is so hard to define it in anything other than dull, mechanistic measures of minutes broadcast, I do, however firmly believe in ’fairness,’ which, while it is a subjective judgement, one can easily identify. [Ed Note: The BBC Trust is holding a series of seminars on "impartiality"; first up is economics]

Q: 11. In your experience, what influence have the media had on public and political appointments, including the tenure and termination of those appointment? Please give examples, including of cases in which in your view the public interest was, and was not, well served by such influence.

 A 11.1 As far as public appointments go, the media seem to me have little influence. Quangos. public nquir~es and task forces seem to have their members selected by the same faceless mechanism as ever. They are probably better for it than the cheap political stunts which see some familiar-ish face made ’tsar’ of something or other, posing for a photo-call and producing a report which washes out of the Whitehall Cloaca Maxima in no time [Ed Note: The Cloaca Maxima was the sewage system of Ancient Rome]

 11.2 When it comes to the media ending careers, perhaps the people you ought to hear from are those in the hapless position of having been appointed manager of the England football team,