
Paddy French is crowdfunding
Weʼre raising £100,000 to defend a libel action brought by BBC Panorama reporter John Ware
- London
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THE BBC reporter John Ware has issued a claim for libel against Press Gang editor Paddy French.
Ware seeks £50,000 in damages over a Press Gang pamphlet criticising the Panorama anti-Semitism programme in July 2019.
Press Gang is contesting the action.
On July 22 Labour settled a libel action brought by Ware.
Labour apologised in open court and agreed to pay damages.
The action does not affect Ware v French which is a different case about a different publication
Ware v French will now go to court for the first stage this autumn.
This appeal is to help pay the substantial costs of instructing solicitors and counsel to fight the proceedings.
Ware's action concerns the Press Gang pamphlet “Is The BBC Anti-Labour? — Panorama's Biased Anti-Semitism Reporting: A Case To Answer” published last December.
This was a critical analysis of last year's Panorama programme "Is Labour Anti-Semitic?"
The Press Gang pamphlet weighed up the evidence and took a critical view of the programme.
Press Gang has instructed the London solicitors Bindmans.
We hope you’ll be able to support this appeal.
We’ll keep you updated on this site — but you can also follow events on the website, press-gang.org — and on Twitter (@pguk10).
Many thanks.
Paddy French
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Updates
8
2 months ago
Paddy French
2 months agoAt a preliminary hearing on Thursday, February 18, Mr Justice Saini heard arguments from both sides about what an ordinary reader would have understood the article to mean. Judgment handed down this morning. Press Gang posted an article this afternoon https://wp.me/p3kXx7-21P You can read the judgment at https://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/QB/2021/384.html We fight on!
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4 months ago
Paddy French
4 months agoThe preliminary hearing in Ware v French has been set for Thursday, 18 February 2021. This will be a half day session after which the judge will decide if the case should go to full trial.
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4 months ago
Paddy French
4 months agoThe preliminary hearing in Ware v French has been set for Thursday, 18 February 2021. This will be a half day session after which the judge will decide if the case should go to full trial.
Share this update to help us raise more
Paddy French started crowdfunding
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Anonymous
Mar 11, 2021
Carol Freireich
Mar 10, 2021
£20.00
eifion lewis
Mar 8, 2021
£20.00
Illinois Cook
Mar 7, 2021
Well done, Paddy!
£24.00
Tessa Finch
Mar 1, 2021
Good luck.
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Anonymous
Mar 1, 2021
Geoff Lamb
Mar 1, 2021
Don’t let them think they’ve won. Good luck!!
£100.00

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About the fundraiser

Paddy French
London
Paddy French, 71, is a journalist with four decades experience of investigative reporting. After ten years as a current affairs producer with ITV, he retired to edit the Press Gang website — press-gang.org — to expose rogue journalists like Andrew Norfolk of the Times.