Madeleine McCann's Father Urges Stricter Press Regulation Amid Recollections of Media "Monstering".

Gerry McCann, father to Madeleine McCann has demanded more robust oversight for the UK media, describing how intense press coverage made him feel as if he was being "drowning under the pressure".

A Family Subjected to Press "Abuses"

According to Gerry McCann, his family was tormented by press "abuses" and that the media had "frequently disrupted" the investigation into his daughter's going missing in 2007.

He stated that the intrusion took a "significant emotional cost" on his family. "We faced sustained interest and inaccurate reports for many months that forced us to take legal action to stop it," he reportedly said.

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

A Call to Restart Press Regulation Review

McCann and his wife, Kate, are among more than 30 people who have signed a letter urging the government to restart the second phase of the Leveson inquiry, which was due to examine the dynamic between the media and the police.

McCann said it was unacceptable that over a year later, press regulation was "off the agenda". He described how his family had been victims of "relentless targeting" by certain the media and that the press was "stationed" outside his home for months after the disappearance.

Describing the Harassment

Describing the intrusion, he said: "Media at our doorstep, cameras being shoved their cameras against our car window, when we had two-year-old twins in the back who were scared, and how distressing that is for you as a parent."

"It's the half-truths. It's the making up of stories to suit a narrative, rather than reality, which destroys people's lives," he added.

The Need for Stronger Regulation and Accountability

He argued this behavior demonstrated why there needed to be tougher press regulation. "At night, as we prepared for bed, we'd put on the news, and there'd be major reports about ourselves and alleged events," he said.

"That can drag you down, 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 major publishers, there is little accountability," he asserted.

Official Response and Changing News Environment

A government minister stated that a follow-up part of the inquiry had been discounted and that the media landscape was now profoundly changed.

"We agree that the landscape has transformed dramatically since the Leveson's second phase was proposed: the public is now more likely to get their news from the internet, which has presented new and different challenges," they stated.

It was also noted that balancing the rights of victims with the need for a free press was a "challenging task to get right," but acknowledged that "steps must be taken in this area".

A Continued Search for Answers

The child went missing from a Portuguese holiday resort in 2007 at the age of three. Gerry McCann said that it was "deeply disturbing" how the press had consistently meddled with the investigation.

"Leaked information which was meant for police only... This meant a potential culprit, you knew a lot more than you should have done," he said.

Regarding the ongoing search, he said the possibility he would find his daughter was "small but still alive". "Our wish is to find her alive, but we need to establish the facts and bring whoever's responsible, and other children are at risk while that perpetrator is free," he concluded.