Updated: The McCanns would be happy for the case to be archived. (SOS Madeleine McCann)

Internet et le Daily Express ont été la solution

That's where I left off yesterday! To continue:

http://sosmaddie.dhblogs.be/

Selon Clarence Mitchell, le succès de la campagne internationale de Kate et Gerry McCann repose sur l’utilisation d’internet, et en particulier sur le site crée à la demande du couple quelques jours après la disparition de leur fille Maddie.

Uniquement que sur Google, ont retrouve aujourd’hui presque six millions d’entrées pour le mot "Maddie", dépassé largement par les huit million d’entrées pour "Gerry McCann" et un nombre quasi identique d’entrées pour "Kate McCann. "

According to Clarence Mitchell, the success of Kate and Gerry McCann's international campaign rests on the use of the internet, and in particular on the site created a few days after their daughter Maddie's disappearance.

On Google alone, today, we found nearly six million entries for the word, "Maddie," greatly surpassed by the eight million entries for, "Gerry McCann," and a virtually identical number of entries for, "Kate McCann."

"C’est l’accès à l'internet qui nous a donné de l’élan," a dit Clarence Mitchell confirmant l’importance du site findmadeleine ou les millions de visiteurs, parmi plusieurs informations et photos de Maddie, ont pu également trouver dest-shirts et des bracelets en vente, même si sa finalité première semble être l’appel aux dons.

"It is access to the internet which has given us momentum," said Clarence Mitchell, confirming the importance of the site, "findmadeleine," where amongst the information about Madeleine and the photos, the millions of visitors could also find T shirts and bracelets for sale, although its primary purpose seems to be the appeal for donations.

La somme exacte engendré au tour de Kate et Gerry McCann, après la disparition de leur fille, n’a jamais été divulgué officiellement mais ont l’estime à plusieurs millions d’euros.

The exact amount generated around Kate and Gerry McCann, after their daughter's disappearance, has never been divulged, but is estimated at several million Euros.

Dans son discours à propos du rôle des Relations Publiques dans la gestion de crise, Clarence Mitchell, après avoir jugé que l’attitude des médias irlandais à propos de l’affaire McCann était plus "responsable" que celle des médias au Royaume-Uni, à reconnu que la poursuite en justice pour diffamation des journaux du groupe Express à marqué un tournant dans la campagne des McCann et leur image dans les médias.

In his talk about the role of Public Relations in crisis management, Clarence Mitchell, after having decided that the attitude of the Irish media about the McCann case was more, "responsible," than that of the UK media, acknowledged that the legal action for defamation against the journals of the Express group marked a turning point in the McCanns' campaign and their image in the media.

Après avoir obtenu du groupe Express plus de 725.000 euros en dommages, selon Clarence Mitchell, toute la "publicité négative" à propos des McCann dans les médias britanniques s’est retournée en leur faveur.

After having obtained more than 725,000 Euros in damages from the Express group, according to Clarence Mitchell, all the, "negative publicity," about the McCanns in the British media turned back in their favour.

Selon plusieurs experts en Relations Publiques, Communication et Médias, l’action en justice contre le groupe Express, par elle-même, n’expliquerait pas le silence ou la position adopté par la plupart des tabloïdes britanniques : "Il ne faut pas oublier que les McCann ont eu cinq responsables en Relations Publiques à leur service. Et pas des moindres," rappelait un des experts.

According to several experts in Public Relations, Communication and the Media, the legal action against the Express group, by itself, does not explain the silence or the position adopted by most British tabloids: "It should not be forgotten that the McCanns have had five Public Relations representatives in their service. And not the least important." recalled one of the experts.

Depuis la disparition de Maddie, le 3 mai 2007, Kate et Gerry McCann ont compté sur Alex Woolfall, spécialiste en gestion de crises arrivée à Praia da Luz au nom de la Mark Warner, Sheree Dodd, ancienne journaliste du Daily Mirror et représentante du Foreign Office qui est resté au service du couple pendant neuf jours. C’est Clarence Mitchell qui la remplace jusqu’en juillet et l’arrivée de Justine McGuinness et David Hughes. Après que Kate et Gerry McCann ont été nommées arguidos, en septembre dernier, c’est à nouveau que Clarence Mitchell deviens leur porte-parole et responsable en communication, laissant derrière lui son poste auprès du gouvernement britannique.

Since Maddie's disappearance, in May 2007, Kate and Gerry McCann have counted on Alex Woolfall, specialist in crisis management, who went to Praia da Luz on behalf of Mark Warner, Sheree Dodd, former Daily Mirror journalist and representative of the Foreign Office, who stayed in the couple's service for nine days. It was Clarence Mitchell who replaced her until July and the arrival of Justine McGuinness and David Hughes. After Kate and Gerry McCann were named as arguidos, in September of last year, it was again Clarence Mitchell who became their spokesperson and head of communication, leaving behind his British government post.

Retour assuré au 10 Downing Street

Officiellement, le directeur de l'unité de surveillance des médias du gouvernement britannique depuis juillet 2005, à démissionné de son poste pour se joindre à la campagne des McCann avec un salaire payé par le multimillionnaire Brian Kennedy. La réalité serait, selon une source du Foreign Office, tout’ autre. Clarence Mitchell à reçu la promesse d’être repris à son poste une fois que les McCann seraient tirés d’affaire et, jusque la, il continue à utiliser les services et les moyens de son unité.

Return to 10 Downing Street is guaranteed.

Officially, the director of the British government's Media Surveillance Unit since July 2005, resigned his post to join the McCanns' campaign with a salary paid by the multi-millionaire Brian Kennedy. The reality, according to a source at the Foreign Office, is altogether different. Clarence Mitchell received the promise of regaining his post once the McCanns were removed from the case and, until then, he continues to use the services and the resources of his unit.

Comme directeur de l’unité de surveillance des médias, ou même internet n’échappe pas au contrôle régulier des 40 employés permanents, Clarence avait pour mission de fournir un rapport d’information continuellement mis à jour de tout ce qu’est publié ou dit par les médias à propos des sujets qui intéressent le premier-ministre et tous les services gouvernementaux.

Envoyé à Praia da Luz par le Foreign Office, c’est lui que, par l'intermédiaire des ambassades britanniques respectives, organise les visites de campagne de Kate et Gerry McCann au Vatican, Madrid, Berlin, Amsterdam, Rabat et Bruxelles.

As director of the Media Surveillance Unit, where even the internet does not escape the regular inspection of the 40 permanent employees, Clarence's role was to provide continually updated reports on everything that was published or said by the media on subjects of interest to the Prime Minister and all government departments.

Sent to Praia da Luz by the Foreign Office, it was he who, with the respective British ambassadors as intermediaries, organised Kate and Gerry McCann's campaign visits to the Vatican, Madrid, Berlin, Amsterdam, Rabat and Brussels.

The Express Group: how did you get to this sorry state?

Today I have been reading, like the rest of the world, that the Express group of newspapers has apologised to Kate and Gerry McCann for any distress caused by stories which they have published since May last year when Madeleine disappeared. This has motivated me to tell you about a suggestion made by my daughter on Friday evening of last week.

My daughter is a very kind-hearted person, who does not indulge in gossip and who would not take a great deal of notice of what she might see as wild speculation. Since the McCanns' daughter disappeared, my daughter has retained an attitude of great sympathy for them. On Friday evening she was sitting by my desk, as I was reading an article on the Duarte Levy blog, "SOS Madeleine McCann," when she asked me why people had been so nasty about the McCanns, when their child was missing and they were suffering and would suffer for the rest of their lives for leaving the child unattended.

I began to describe to my daughter some of the things which seemed to have made people wonder about the case and about the parents and that in the absence of official statements, press conferences by the Portuguese police etc, that people had begun to speculate based on the information, official and unofficial which was available. My daughter is one of those people who chose not to read any of the speculative reports. When I had explained what probably gave rise to speculation, my daughter suggested that I write about our conversation and what I told her about the reasons people had been bothered about the case.

My daughter's question was, "Why have people been so nasty about the McCanns?" I can see what she means. I cannot recall a case where there has been so much speculation by the world's media and arising in internet forums dedicated to the case. So, what were those things that gave rise to the intense interest and speculation?

I can remember seeing the first report on the BBC's news pages of their web site. It was on the morning of Friday May 4th, 2007, and there were a few lines, heading the Front Page. I was shocked to read that a British toddler had disappeared from her family's holiday apartment in Portugal and in the days that followed I searched the news pages for updates.

Some folks have posted on internet forums that they were immediately suspicious about what had happened. I guess I was just shocked that two intelligent doctors had left three small children alone. I read everything I could find on the subject and I must say, I became quite confused by the different accounts I was reading of the events.

When Kate McCann returned to the apartment, the shutters had been jemmied and the window forced open.

"Heart specialist Gerry McCann rang his sister Trish in Scotland after Maddy vanished from her cot placed between two-year-old twins Sean and Amelie.

Trish revealed yesterday: "He was breaking his heart, saying 'Madeleine's been abducted, she's been abducted'."

Gerry and wife Kate, both 38, had been checking their three children in the family's ground-floor flat every 30 minutes as they dined with friends 120ft away.

Trish said: "When Kate checked, she came out screaming. Maddy had gone. The door was open and the window in the bedroom and shutters were jemmied open. Nothing had been touched and no valuables taken."

The Mirror May 5th, 2007

• "Close family friend Gill Renwick, of Liverpool, who also spoke to GP Kate yesterday, said: "Poor Kate and Gerry don't know where to turn.

"Madeleine has obviously been taken. She couldn't have gone out on her own and the shutters were forced."

• "Close family friend Jon Corner, of Liverpool, told how tearful Kate sobbed down the phone early yesterday: "Someone has taken my little girl."

"Jon, godparent to the McCanns' twins, said: "She was in an absolutely hysterical state - very, very distressed. She blurted out Madeleine had been abducted.

"Kate said the shutters of the room were smashed. Madeleine was missing It looks as though someone had gone straight past the twins to get to her. Kate was incredibly upset. I've spoken to her since, and she's still completely devastated."

• "Mark Warner management denied there were signs of forced entry at the flat claiming instead that roller shutters had been slid up and the bedroom window opened."

So, that was the first point of confusion for me and for many others. The shutters had been jemmied, the shutters had been smashed, there was no sign of forced entry.

Then there was the question of, was the apartment locked or unlocked?

Sky News Wednesday May 9th, 2007

Madeleine's aunt Philomena McCann, quoted by Sky News:

"Of Madeleine's disappearance, Ms McCann said: "They (Kate and Gerry) were going back to check a locked apartment where they had left the kids sleeping."

However, it subsequently seems to have been accepted that the apartment was unlocked.

CNN September 10th, 2007

"The parents told police they had left the girl and her siblings asleep in the unlocked apartment as they dined just meters away, checking on them frequently. However, later in the evening they discovered she was missing."

Long before September 10th, though, internet forums had sprung up, dedicated to the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, originally I think based on the question of negligence. Had the McCanns been negligent in leaving their three children alone in the apartment? Of course there were the contradictions about the distance; 20 yards, 40 yards, 50 yards, 100 yards, 120 yards, just like eating in your own back garden, contradictions which gave rise to the production of aerial photos and Google images, showing measurements. Again, no official statement and so people got curious and wanted to find out.

The initial questions about negligence and expanding and contracting distances, were followed by speculation based on, "leaks," from, "official sources," published in the Portuguese and Spanish press. There was much talk about the secrecy laws in Portugal and hence the lack of official information, but in the UK, even with regular police press conferences, I am sure I have never seen so much written about those who might be involved in a criminal investigation, especially once those people were named as, "arguidos," or official suspects.

The Find Maddy Forum on the Daily Mirror was very active for some time, with hundreds of members posting a wide and wild range of theories. This forum was closed down.

What else did I tell my daughter that gave rise to speculation? Well, there was the sighting by Jane Tanner of the man she saw carrying a child. First reports were that the man was carrying a bundle which could have been a child. Eventually, after requests by the McCanns, a sketch was produced from Jane Tanner's description. A local bartender said that the sketch looked like, "an egg with hair," and so, "Eggman," was born on the forums. This sketch was widely printed in the media. Then there seemed to be updates on the description and we were told that Jane Tanner saw a man carrying a child wearing pink pyjamas.

The Sun 20th November, 2007

"Seconds later she saw a man cross from left to right in front of her with a child lolling back in his arms.

Jane said: “It wasn’t unusual to see people with children, even at that time of night. But my attention was drawn to him because the child had bare feet.

“It was a cold night and I thought that was strange because as a mother I would never have taken my child around at that time without something on their feet or a blanket. All I could see of the child was their legs dangling."

And later in the Sun interview:

"Then, at around 11.15, two policemen arrived and I told them. Later CID arrived. They did this thing called a cognitive technique, where they put you back in the moment, and it was then that I remembered the pyjamas. “There were pink and white, they were what Madeleine was wearing. I just felt so awful, I felt I could have stopped this from happening. I think of that everyday."

So, Jane saw a man carrying a child, and all she could see was, "their legs dangling." This is clear from the sketch which was drawn from Jane's description and the pyjamas can be seen in the sketch, which Jane describes as being pink and white. Remember, she saw only the legs of the pyjamas.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/6631255.stm

BBC May 7th, 2007

"Her family confirmed she was wearing white pyjama bottoms with a small floral design and a short-sleeved pink top with a picture of Winnie the Pooh character Eeyore."

So, the pyjama bottoms would not have been pink!

I can appreciate from these things that confused me why lots of people became quite speculative and suspicious about what went on that evening on which Madeleine McCann disappeared. But how did the Express manage to get to such a sorry state? Did they just reprint the reports from Portuguese journals such as Sol, which was one of the first to print details of, "leaks," from, "official sources."? I believe one of the articles printed by the Express, which carried allegations of the involvement of Kate and Gerry in Madeleine's disappearance, was written by a couple of the Express' reporters in Praia da Luz, but did not name their, "sources," and that article, at least, did not appear, if my memory serves me, to be a reprint of something published in a Portuguese journal.

So, where did the Express' reporters get their stories from? "Sources." ?? Very strange for a national newspaper to print such stuff and I can see how it has come to such a sorry state! Printing stories about the parents' involvement in their daughter's disappearance with nothing but, "sources," to back them up is just a bit silly, if anyone were to ask me, which my daughter did!

There has been very little official information about evidence in this case and we have no way of knowing what evidence the PJ may or may not have. All we know at the moment, or think we know, is that the Portuguese police wish to question some of the people who were on holiday with the McCanns about alleged inconsistencies in their initial statements. So, folks, I guess we wait and see. We have theories and wild, wild theories, but we don't know what happened to little Madeleine McCann. All I can add is that if she is alive, and part of me still hopes that she is, that she is unharmed emotionally and physically. If she is dead, then let her be found and laid to rest.