The McCann family Father Calls for Stronger Press Oversight Amid Accounts of Press "Monstering".

Gerry McCann, father to Madeleine McCann has demanded greater oversight for the UK media, describing how being "monstered" by the press made him feel like he was being "suffocated and buried".

The McCanns Tormented by Press "Abuses"

Gerry McCann stated that his family was tormented by press "abuses" and that the media had "consistently hampered" the search for answers regarding his daughter's disappearance in 2007.

He stated that the media attention exacted a "significant emotional cost" on his family. "We faced sustained interest and sensationalized stories for 15 months or more that compelled us to take legal action to stop it," he explained.

"We are lucky. We survived. We had strong support. But I can promise you, there were times where I felt like I was overwhelmed, and it was the media, primarily, not the situation we were in," he stated.

A Call to Revive Leveson Inquiry

McCann and his wife, Kate, are among a group of people who have endorsed a letter urging the government to reopen the second phase of the Leveson inquiry, which was intended to examine the dynamic between the media and the police.

McCann said it was not acceptable that more than a year on, press regulation was "no longer a priority". He described how 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.

Describing the Harassment

Detailing the events, he said: "Reporters arriving at our home, photographers pushing their cameras against our car window, when we had two-year-old twins in the back who were terrified, and how upsetting that is for you as a parent."

"It's the half-truths. It's the fabrication of stories to fit the agenda, rather than reality, which ruins lives," he stated.

The Need for Tougher Oversight and Accountability

He argued this behavior showed why there needed to be stricter press regulation. "We'd be getting ready for bed, we'd put on the news, and there'd be major reports about ourselves and unverified claims," 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 has to be redress. And at the minute, for most of the large media outlets, there is little accountability," he asserted.

Official Response and Changing Media Landscape

The Culture Secretary stated that a second phase of the inquiry had been rejected and that the media landscape was now drastically altered.

"We share the view that the context has evolved significantly from the time the second part of Leveson was recommended: people now are more likely to get their news online from a whole variety of sources, which has presented new and different challenges," the minister said.

They added that weighing the rights of victims with the principle of press freedom was a "really difficult thing to get right," but conceded that "steps must be taken in this area".

An Enduring Hope for Closure

The child went missing from a family vacation apartment in 2007 at the age of three. It was stated that it was "profoundly disappointing" how the press had frequently obstructed with the investigation.

"Leaked information which ought to have remained private... So if you were the perpetrator, you knew a lot more than you should have done," he noted.

On the prospect of finding Madeleine, he said the hope he would find his daughter was "small but still alive". "I'd love to find her alive, but we need to establish the facts and see justice served, and others are at risk while whoever is responsible is free," he concluded.