Media Brief
I'm the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ's media correspondent and this is my brief selection of what's going on.
A senior News of the World executive has been suspended by the paper following a "serious allegation" that he was involved with phone hacking when the paper was edited by Andy Coulson, now the prime minister's director of communications. The paper confirmed that Ian Edmondson, the title's assistant editor (news), was "suspended from active duties" before Christmas. The that the court documents appear to link him with the interception of messages from Sienna Miller's phone in 2005. Coulson has always denied knowledge of any wrongdoing at the paper.
The ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ's Jon Manel says he has seen court papers relating to her case which refer to the notebooks of a private investigator who was jailed in 2007 for hacking into phone messages of royal staff.
The ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ reports Avon and Somerset Police have complained to the media regulator Ofcom about ITV's coverage of the Jo Yeates murder investigation. ITV News said it stood by its story and accused the police of trying to censor it. The force has now overturned a press conference ban on ITV journalists, but warned it will adopt "similar tactics" if the media hampers its investigation.
ITV News has been allowed back into press conferences about the murder of Joanna Yeates, after Avon & Somerset police lifted a ban on the broadcaster. David Mannion, the editor-in-chief of ITV News, told Radio 4's Media Show the ban was "irresponsible" and had developed into "an issue about the freedom of the press".
that the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ has "strayed from the straight and narrow" and its "sails need to be trimmed". The veteran natural history film-maker told the New Statesman the Corporation had become inefficient and needed to be "refocused". But he warned against removing the licence fee and said the corporation remained "crucially important" to British society.
Sky Atlantic, BSkyB's new channel showcasing US programming including HBO output, will launch on 1 February. The highlights in the first month include Martin Scorsese's Boardwalk Empire and David Simon's Treme. Shameless creator Paul Abbott's new six-part drama, Hit and Miss, will also debut on Sky Atlantic later this year.
The ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ reports music sales in the UK have fallen for the sixth consecutive year, according to the British record industry's trade association. The BPI has blamed illegal downloading for the drop in sales, and again called for "meaningful action" to tackle the issue. The music and books retailer HMV has announced plans to close 60 UK stores in the next 12 months.
The ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ's newspaper review looks at the papers' coverage of Jo Yeates's death. "Was Jo strangled with her own sock?" asks the headline in the Daily Mail. The Daily Telegraph says police are still "keeping an open mind" as they hunt Joanna Yeates's killer. The Independent calls the search for the garment "the latest in a series of ostensibly insignificant clues". ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ newspapers review
Links in full
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• ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ | News of the World suspends news editor
• ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ | Police complain over ITV coverage of Yeates inquiry
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• ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ | UK music sales decline for sixth consecutive year
• ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ | Newspaper review
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