“I am watching developments in the UK with interest. I treat the report as a judgment and judges simply do not enter into discussion about judgments they have given. They do not respond to comment, however misconceived, neither do they seek to correct error. The established media broadly conforms to the law and, when they do not, they are potentially liable under the law. In so far as the internet is concerned, there has been, and for many, there remains a perception that actions do not have legal consequences. There is not only a danger of trial by Twitter, but also of an unending punishment, and no prospect of rehabilitation, by Google. Just as it took time for the wilder excesses of the early penny press to be civilised, it will take time to civilise the internet. The internet does not trade in gossip. It simply publishes it online, conveys it on Facebook, uploads it onto Youtube, tweets and re-tweets it. It is likely that new legal norms and new laws will need to be developed.”

Now who was it that broke the Max Clifford story?