A PROFESSOR in media law in East London has been appointed to the Press Complaints Commission. Ian Walden, from the London University’s Queen Mary College in Mile End, joins the board as a public member

By Mike Brooke

A PROFESSOR in media law in East London has been appointed to the Press Complaints Commission.

Ian Walden, Professor of Information and Communications Law at the London University’s Queen Mary College in Mile End, joins the board as a public member, it has been announced today.

“I firmly believe the system of self regulation is the most appropriate way for the press to be regulated, particularly in a time of increasing media convergence,” he said.

“The Commission provides a crucial alternative to the courts and is freely available to the general public.”

Prof Walden has a distinguished record as a legal academic. In addition to his role at Queen Mary’s, he is also consultant to the law firm Baker & McKenzie and a board member of the Internet Watch Foundation.

He has acted as adviser to a number of institutions, including the European Commission, the World Bank and the House of Lords.

Commission chairman Baroness Buscombe said: “I have always believed it essential that the board includes mostly lay members with experience in public life.”

There are 10 lay Commissioners out of 17, including the Chairman herself, who have no connection to the media industry, while the other seven are drawn from the ranks of senior editors in the national and regional press.