The Edi ' - The Leveson Inquiry

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For Distribution to CPs ~ ~, ~ :~ ~ ~ ~i "~ ~;:~; "!~ ~" ~; ~" ~;i)~" ~ ":~’~ ~; ~ ~?~)?: Whenmaj°r aP°l=CYcomplaintissue’is theupheld,COmmissionthen the newspaperWill publiSho ° ~l Cede does not ~piabe the ~tor~i~Jntah te~al resp~na~bBi~ I~’S ask: ts it/age!? This is one of the main sanctions. There are no fines or compensation, since these would inevitably involve lawyers, making the system legalistic, slow end expensive -- end less accessible fa 3 Public Inf;ere~ detentes d~ ~ot app|y {:~ {:he wh~Ile of the Cb~ ordinary people seeking swift redress. i ~ropria~e ctauses are ~arkad by an asterisk. Adverse adjudications are effective. Editors dislike having to PCC judges each case on i~ merits ~ sO f.~e oirc~msf-aaCes o~e publish them. It means their mistakes are exposed to their ow~ ¯ may ~of: al~s be an appropriate precedent; in a~ther, readers, and often to criticism and ridicule in the columns of their commercial rivals, which is doubly damaging. t adjudications are archived a{: I~he PCC websi~e ~pc~c,o~g In cases of very serious breaches of the Code, the PCC can draw ![ PCC is always wi|iing to give advice o~ the Cede. the adjudication to the attention of the publisher, which could lead to a further public rebuke. Also, as adherence to the Code of Practice it usuany the ed ~r’s responsibility t:~ demo~s~rel;e ¢~mplia~o ,it~ Code, rather ~han for ~he complainant 1~o preys a breach, is written into many journalists’ contracts of employment, breaches can -- and do -- result in dismisse{, although this is e matter for , ’1 , Code applies to all editorial s&arr~, inCtadi~g ph0~ogrephere, ~ to r~ributed edttorJal maltaria4 Such as agency copy, citizen jour~ ~nd readers’ ta~ers. individual publishers. ure to Co-oparate with ~ PCC ir~vesf4gation can itself be e bre L "~ ~ ~ ~ ~: ~ ~ "~’~;~" ~"~ While the Code has had legal recognition -- under the Human .~ ’ ~ Cede should be honoure~ in the spirit as wel~ as the ~etter, Rights erd Data Protection Acts. for example -- it does not attempt s C0debeak is {or gu dance only -- it does not expend ¢~n the Code to duplicate the law. The Code and the law are distinct, Compliance I is not bindin~ on the PCCo with one will net guarantee compliance with the othe~ Journalists must remember that they remain, as ever, subject to the same logo= constraints as every other citizen --such as the laws of arevlous two months although that ~s extended in special defamation, contempt, trespass, harassment and a hundred others. circumstances. The Code wil! often require more of journalists than that demanded by If the PCC regards the complaint as raising a possible issue under the Code. the editor wil! be apereached and g~ven seven days to formulate an initial rescense. The PCC wilt then try to see if there is a basis for conciliation, acting as a go-between to find a suitable remedy ISle L~r~ffng: If conciliation fails, or is inaoeroeriate, or if the case involves a law, but it will never require less. The PCC sys~ conciliation, T between coral although that i resolutions mi Ctarifi¢ i¢ somethi ambigu~ s edmissi ~ ! COrre~ ~ are usu y pu b!icat n might i~ u~ should ] ~ Letl.er~ ’1 comptai ~r ~S en :a ~jectic ~’ .i~ liable )t th, or ,t n of resolving Complaints is based on database end cuttings library is tagged with the complainant’s re are many ways of breaking ~’~e deed ock objection to ensure the mistake is not repeated, nantandedtorwthoutgongtoadjudcaton ’ ..... ’ ~a~i~g ~own omme ma~er~ a . Man y cam an--about p ~s a ways a fine opt on Ths st e not exhaustive -- ma~er * " a, on newspa~,er ~ or m~gazl,e - -- ~s’tes weu -re a reed ed v by t nveveacambnatone dfferentremedes ..... " me eo~or remowng on ~ race v n g co a rnp~a nt . "l’hsa- ppes ¯ A clarification might be ~ )propriata where especially to user-generated material that has not been edited, ~s been omitted from the, -iginal article or ~f ~t ~s : Private ]Iele~er of e#ology Further publicity is often not an rarguebymseadng t~ opsehertofan ...... s attract~ opbon for e compla~cant, parflcu!edy ~n pnvecy case ~he editor that the article yes wrong, or intrusion into grief A private apology, often drafted with the and apologies. Stra gh~I rward factua errors help of a complaints officer, end perhaps tagged to the file as salt with most clean y an~ simply by the outlined above, is sometimes a more suitable remedy a correct on ¯ n the case 3f ser Due error an ape ogy ¯The Code s tee that an ape blished where appropriat~ ths ..... gy ~ Private undertaking. Similarly, undertakings by the editor about the future conduct of ~he newspaper and its staff might also give a complainant some peace of mind. Complaints have been blioatton. An editor’s off~ "to publish a resolved on/;his basis. letter can be app~opriat, when: the car ~inant ative point of view but no ~ubst~ntive ta~ ~1 the piece; Where there el = a number of ~or where the newspaper h~ ~ an anonymo~ md ;e but no other corr0bore ce matadat; of might for reasons of priv~ :y ~ish to ma~ )bje~ione to a piece, =ere a ¯ iCie. An editor might ~ "to publish an erview e bY, a complainant, if th~ ~e are sUfficier 3int~ q res#on~ to e previous ~ory. ~ggln ay of n s, ~ap~per records, Thls Is m JncreasJngI!)pUlar ring cemplainta a~d is off red i~ conjunc ~ with e~bC .=) readies or on its own. Th~ publication’s e ~renic MAD100036581
=’~he Preamble is the key to understanding the Editors’ Code of |Practice. It is the part of the Code which defines the rest. It sets out not only the balance of rights and responsibilities of editors and publishers in a free press regime, but also the underpinning philosophy of self-regulation end the spirit of the Code -- the glue that holds it together. For Distribution to CPs Universal compliance: The Preamble places on puolishers and editors the uttimete duty of care to ensure that the rules are impnemented, it also ends uncertainty over who is covered by the Code oy abollshlng outdated distinctions between journalists and photographers, or other st~ opners or providers of editorial services. In the context of the Cede, the rules far journalists apply to aHB editorial staff, external contributors or suppliers of editorial material For example, in cases covering clandestine devices one subterfuge, this woula normel~y include information suppheo by intermediaries or agents. Online pub|italians: Editorial materiat in online versions of newspapers ano magazines ~s covereo specifically The rules apply to online vers{ons of the newsoapers one magazines as opposed to freestanding online publications ano, as with the print versions embrace editorial material only: ncreasing]y, newspapers’ one magazines’ online content ~s very different from that in the print versions, including, for example, user-generated btogs end chatrooms, one aurae visual material, some of which would not normally be subject to editorial control. Therefore, in 2007, the Press Stanoaros Board of Finance ~ssuee a ~ Qasce ~:c~e extending tqe remit to cover aurae visual editoria material end the Preamble was amenaeo to reflect that, "See a~s~ Cot~ ~s~am~s ab~u~ webdtes). Editorial material was defined as that for which the editor was responsible and could reasonably have been expected to apply the terms of the Code. User-generated content such as blogs anu chatroems continues to be excluded, as does audio visual material that had been Produced ta conform to the standards of another regulator -- such as live or syndicated TV or radio The spirit of the Code. the voluntary will and commitment to making the system work not just to the letter, is an essential element and one rare y available to any statutory or legalistic system. It is only by invoking that spirit of flexibility that the balance -protecting both the rights of the individual end the public’s right to know -- upon which the success of a self-regulatory system relies, can be struck. Although the Code does not try to sat OIyrnpian ethics likely to be more henoured in the breech, it is committed to the highest standards and sees these guidelines as the starting point. The epirtt at’ the Code is embodied in the editors’ commitment to henour it neither toe narrowly nor too broadly -- and net just to the letter This is a clear message to the industry, the PCC and to the public that this is an even-handed, practical Code based on solid principles rather than abstruse definitions buried in the fine print. It should not be abused either by editors trying to tiptoe around the rules, or by complainants playing the system to the detriment of the public’s right to know. Thepanet colour code ~Whatthe Code says ~, Key euestions editors need ~o as~ themselVeS wnen Code issues arise ~; Briefings The coincident to freedom of expression and publication in the on specific public interest s at the core of the philosophy Taken with the areaswnere [ne Code previous commitment, and the Public Interest defences -$8~ S~c~.~on applies Six), it demonstrates the balance to be struck: No compromises on the rights of the indivLdual but-- No unnecessary interference either with freedom of expression or with oublicetien in the public ntereat. Both sides need to be weighed when taking a decision to publish and when adjudicating on complaints. progremmes. This reflects the traditional approach applied to print versions where for exarrp~e, Letters tc the Editor are covered oy the Cede, but advertising and marketing material is not. Co-operaf~ion wi&h the PCC ~s the first test of the spirit of the Code in action. The voluntary system cannot work without universal compl~ance by the industry, end swift co-operation ~s the surest examp=e of compliance Once the PCC is mvolveo n a case there ~s reneweo pressure for e speeoy resolution. First, the Code requires of editors swift co-operation with the PCC m trying to resolve the d~spute. Second the PCC’s target ~s to resmve cases within 35 oays. Failure of publications to co-operate swiftly is, as the Preamble makes clear, itsett a breach of the Code. which may rest t in censure. This happened when a Sunday paper, while stanomg by its story about a pop festival orgamser wi~o complameo of inaccuracies, s~mply failed to proouce any ev~eence. The PCC upheld the complaint by default, reminding editors that it was their Code, and self-regulation could work only by the voluntary participation of the industry / ~cm~,o~:n ,v Sunda ~ World: Rar~om dfJ,2002i it failing to act swiftly is one form of nen-ce-aperatlon, acting precipitately can be another, especially once the PCC is involveo. When an author complained that his book about the death ef Pope John Paul 1 had been m~srepresented in a Sunday magazine section in 2005, the PCC tried to negotiate e mutually acceptable correction. But the magazine jumped the gun, publishing its own correction -- despite being asked by the PCC not to de so and without due prominence The wording of the correction itself would have been MOD100036582
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