Notting Hill star Grant has provided cash to media charity, the Journalism Foundation, supporting free press and responsible journalism...and has helped raise the profile of the charity that is also supporting humanitarian and pro-democracy causes.

Hugh Grant, an alleged victim of phone hacking, has given £14,000 to the Journalism Foundation, an independent charitable foundation which develops pro-democracy media organisations in developing countries.

The actor proffered the cash during a celebrity auction at a gala event supporting the charity in London this week...

An eclectic bunch of celebrities attended the fundraising gala for the foundation, which is currently running a project in South Sudan promoting pro-democracy community reporting.

The gala fundraiser for the charity's global projects was attended by along with Grant, Tracey Emin, Jemima Khan, Gary Lineker, Nancy Dell’Olio, Richard Bacon, Jon Snow and others...

As well as all the glitz more important however was the event's role in the recognition of press freedoms and their vital role in supporting democracy and responsible government, such freedom of speech essentially a vital cog underpinning sustainable development in the third world.

The charity promotes responsible reporting as a force for good and supports projects which have a positive effect on people's lives.

Other typical projects include support for a new Tanzanian newspaper, which aims to hold authority to account and engage its local community in the democratic process... Tanzania emerged from a one-party state in the 1990s and free media is only just developing...

As for Hugh Grant, the attendance of the popular actor ensures publicity... The actor attracts abundant headlines such is the interest in his celebrity status but he has also become an active campaigner for responsible journalism...

The actor has been granted Core Participant Status in Lord Justice Leveson's inquiry in the UK into press ethics and hacking. The enquiry that follows the scandal at News International involving the alleged hacking of murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler's phone and others has put the spotlight on journalistic practices...

While a free press is recognised as a fundamental part in the promotion and maintenance of democracy... and responsible press freedoms are widely supported by the majority, the hacking scandal has been seen by the majority of people as one step too far.

The issues are complex because stories in the public interest are acknowledged to have a right to be heard; but with tabloid investigations resorting to surveillance in effect to garner scandal and gossip the lines have obviously been crossed... Still for some the views now being widely expressed on the taming of the tabloid press have a worrying authoritarian ring to them...

The debate has been a welcome one though; and the Leveson enquiry has also exposed the commercial pressures that many journalists are under and raised the level of discussion of what a free press actually is and should be today.

Meanwhile the charity the Journalism Foundation, which was launched in December 2011, hopes to restore credibility to media output, including the promotion of best practices in developing countries.

The charity has various high profile humanitarian supporters including Lord Paddy Ashdown, the respected authority on international affairs; leading Russian publisher and philanthropist Alexander Lebedev and also distinguished campaigning journalist John Pilger...

The hacking scandal put the spotlight on journalistic endeavour and has increased the pressure on the media to focus on content that as well as providing entertainment and practical information...assists social progress and improvements for the public good in a fair and honest way.

The charity foundation supported by a variety of figures interested in press freedoms and responsibilities is also championing the role of social media as a medium that has the potential to do good.

The foundation recently ran workshops exploring the role of Tunisian journalist social media activists... The so called Facebook generation of mainly young Arab pro-democracy supporters have been instrumental in recent events in the Arab Spring, drawing attention to human rights abuses via social media, especially Facebook networking.

The Facebook generation of Arab activists have also helped to provide important information to assist humanitarian organisations like the Red Cross as they seek to deliver aid and progress peaceful resolutions in the region.

Charity bloggers from NGOs like UNICEF have also been effective at raising awareness for humanitarian crisis during the Arab Spring, notably during the Libya conflict in which the charity’s social media reporters offered live coverage from the ground on the dangers facing children during the battle for Benghazi...