Libel Trial McCann v Gonçalo Amaral - Day 3 Witness No 4
The testimony as it happened...
(19.09.2013, 3.00pm) Cláudia Nogueira, Managing Director of the Portuguese Public Relations and Communications Company, Plus - People Development. From 2009 to 2011 – she was the Executive Director of the Portuguese private agency Lift Consulting, a Company engaged by the McCanns.
Her relationship with the couple was initially professional but with time it became personal. She knows Gonçalo Amaral only "publicly" (they never had personal contact).
1) McCann family lawyer, Isabel Duarte, is the first to question the witness.
ID – Why did you leave Lift Consulting?
CN answers that the media pressure was too great and that her work in support of the McCanns was very difficult. They were very worn down.
ID – In the course of your profession did you have access to statistics?
CN said she had.
ID – Do you know if at least 2.2 million people watched the documentary in Portugal?
CN says she doesn't remember the exact number but she knows it was 50% of the audience share.
ID – Do you still work as a communication manager?
CN says she does. She says that people focused on this program, which is rare.
ID asks if the attention of social communication decreased afterwards. (note: she might have meant "care for Madeleine")
CN thinks there were thousands of news items about the Amaral book and documentary. There were about 2000 for the book and about 1000 for the documentary.
ID – Were these news items suggestive of any other solutions for the case?
CN No unfortunately. It wasn't well balanced. All the focus was on the book's conclusions.
ID – Did you try to offer a counterpoint?
CN – Yes, but the social communication wasn't looking for contradictions.
ID – Was the documentary copied in English on the Web without authorization?
CN says it was.
2) Defence lawyers.
a) TVI lawyers’ questions.
TVI – Did you know that TVI wanted also to broadcast the Channel 4 documentary (Emma Loach's one, "Madeleine was here")?
CN says she knows.