Madeleine McCann's Father Urges Stricter Press Oversight Following Recollections of Media "Monstering".

The father of Madeleine McCann has demanded greater oversight for the UK media, detailing 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 subjected to press "abuses" and that the media had "consistently hampered" the search for answers regarding his daughter's going missing in 2007.

He stated that the media attention exacted a "heavy burden" on his family. "We had constant scrutiny and inaccurate reports for many months that led us to take legal action to stop it," he explained.

"We are lucky. We survived. We received tremendous support. Yet, I must tell you, there were times where I felt like I was drowning, and it was the media, primarily, not the situation we were in," he recounted.

An Appeal for Restart Leveson Inquiry

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

McCann said it was unacceptable that over a year later, press regulation was "no longer a priority". He said that his family had been victims of "relentless targeting" by parts of the media and that the press was "posted" outside his home for an extended period after the disappearance.

Describing the Intrusion

Describing the intrusion, he said: "Journalists coming to the house, photographers pushing their cameras against our car window, when we had our toddler twins in the back who were scared, and how distressing that is for you as a parent."

"It's the misleading narratives. It's the fabrication of stories to fit the agenda, rather than reality, which destroys people's lives," he emphasized.

A Demand for Tougher Regulation and Redress

He said the conduct highlighted why there needed to be tougher 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 said.

"That feeling is overwhelming, and you can see how people succumb to 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 these mainstream media, there is no effective recourse," he asserted.

Official Position and Changing News Environment

The Culture Secretary said that a second phase of the inquiry had been ruled out and that the media landscape was now profoundly changed.

"Our position aligns that the landscape has transformed dramatically since the Leveson's second phase was recommended: the public is now more likely to get their news online from a whole variety of sources, which has presented new and different challenges," they explained.

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

A Continued Search for Closure

The child went missing from a family vacation apartment in 2007 at the age of three. Gerry McCann said that it was "profoundly disappointing" how the press had consistently meddled with the investigation.

"Confidential details which ought to have remained private... Consequently, anyone involved, you knew much more than you should have done," he noted.

Speaking about hope, he said the possibility he would find his daughter was "slim but it's not extinguished". "Our wish is to find her alive, but we need to discover the truth and see justice served, and others are at risk while that person is free," he concluded.