Ireland’s Press Ombudsman, John Horgan, on accountability, regulation and redress: Where do press councils stand?

In recent years, the creation of a number of press councils in Europe and elsewhere, as well as the concurrent appointment of internal ombudsmen or readers’ representatives in many significant newspapers, particularly in the United States, is a clear response to a growing public perception that there is a need for an appropriate level of accountability for the print media. It is fair to assume that this is related, in part, to a public perception that there is a need for remedies for abuses of media power – as there is a need for remedies for abuses of institutional power in any society.