Law and regulation for TV news- Lecture 4

Regulation is in the process of change at the moment as a result of the Leveson inquiry which could change the way regulation works, including re-writing the codes of conduct.  The conclusion of Leveson will have an effect on the whole of journalism and how it is regulated despite the inquiry being a result of phone hacking by tabloid newspapers. The 4 codes of conduct are;

PCC- The press complaints commission which deals with newspapers and magazines.

OFCOM- Deals with broadcasters.

BBC- For BBC staff and licence holders.

NUJ- National Union of journalists-For Journalists.

As journalists we need to recognise risk- Making sure that there are no legal issues within the story we are writing. This can become difficult and slip through the radar because of the tight deadlines and rushing to complete a story, however it is essential to ensure that risk is recognise. It is a key skill to recognise danger.

The codes of conduct matter because the highlight what is a criminal offence and ethics. An example is the former BBC1 boss Peter Fincham who edited a documentary to make it look like the Queen was in a 'huf' when she was wasn't. As a result he lost his job because it was ethically incorrect and against the code of conduct. Not following the codes of contact can damage a career. Following the codes help you build and maintain trust with the audience. The codes tell us how far we can go to get a story, what practices are legitimate and when circumstances make a difference. 

The key areas of the codes are:

Fair treatment- respect for privacy.

Ethical behaviour

Requirement for accuracy and Impartiality 

Protecting vunerable groups- e.g children. 

Press compaints commission: 

The press complaints commission have a few flaws; they are self regulated, all the major newspaper groups make up the PCC and the newspapers are very close to the regulator. It is like the police investigating the police. It has very few sanctions and cant fine anyone or insist that anyone should be sacked.

Ofcom:

Ofcom can fine companies, e.g the BBC were fined 150,000 for Jonathan Ross and Russell Brand's phone calls. Ofcom can fine up to 5% of the revenue for the programme. They can also take away a broadcasting licence o operate and take shows off the air and therefore has a lot more power than the PCC. It tried to ensure ham and offence isn't caused and attempt to keep broadcasters safe. The saying 'Who guard the guardians was used to describe ofcom. They can also make corrections of finding broadcast and direct not to repeat a programme

Impartiality is a requirement for broadcasters but not for newspapers. There needs to be an absence of bias or preconception, not like America and FOX news where they can be as biased as they like, like our newspapers.

BBC Editorial guidelines show how to do the job well and they keep high standards, for example ensuring that good research notes are taken when writing a story to avoid misleading the audience.

The public interest defense can be used when breaking the rules regarding hidden cameras as if the information is of overwhelming value to society like a miscarriage of justice then a hidden camera can be used to gain evidence if there is no other way of gaining the information.