IMPRESS-approved magazine publisher issues legal challenge against the Daily Telegraph after it published article about his criminal past

Last week, the Daily Telegraph published an article about Steve McNought, whose Bristol-based publishing company Arkbound was recently approved by official UK press regulator, IMPRESS.

The January 21, 2017 article, “Armed robber turned publisher wins approval from state-approved Press regulator funded by Max Mosley” by the Sunday Telegraph’s chief reporter Robert Mendick, focused on McNought’s criminal past, namely a series of armed robberies he committed in 2007-08 for which he received a 12-year prison sentence.

McNought, then known as Stephen Jackley, was released from prison in 2015 with the help of the Prince’s Trust. He changed his name by deed poll later that year.

Arkbound Director Steve McNought in 2016 (photograph by Tom Jackson)

In October last year, I corresponded with McNought for an item I wrote about press regulation, of which he offered a strong defence.

Today, I asked him to comment on the Telegraph’s article. Here is his response.

“The Telegraph’s coverage is a clear attempt to undermine Impress, using me as a tool to do so, in the most nasty and underhand way. Aside from the factual inaccuracies, the article completely disregards my recent work – which includes getting personal commendations from Prince Charles, winning a series of awards, and being part of several respectable initiatives. The article implies that anyone with a criminal background cannot be a journalist, yet throughout history some of the greatest journalists have come from disadvantaged backgrounds that sometimes involved criminal conduct during their youth. Given that the Telegraph itself is run by people with not exactly ‘whiter than white’ backgrounds (any simple investigation will reveal the full details), and that it has been subject to numerous libel proceedings, with a proven political bias, their stance is deeply hypocritical. It is an ethos that implies no-one deserves second chances, and should never be allowed to move forward, no matter what positive steps they make.

“I have been informed that several people and organisations have written to The Telegraph in criticism of this article, though I doubt any remedial or corrective action will be taken. The libelous aspects of this article are currently subject to legal challenge.”

See also: “The Case for Regulation,” my October 31, 2016 item re: Members of official UK press regulator IMPRESS answer criticism that state-backed regulation could undermine a “vibrant local press.”