The most radical proposal in the Leveson report is it’s response to the so-called ‘Desmond Problem’ – namely that media owners such as Richard Desmond can decide simply to leave a voluntary system of self-regulation. It is Leveson’s proposal to solve this problem with legislation that has sent newspaper owners and the PCC into a tailspin, even though Leveson himself was absolutely clear that he was proposing independent regulation rather than a ‘statutory regulator of the press’. Continue reading
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Let’s be clear about what Lord Justice Leveson recommended and did not recommend. He did not recommend statutory regulation of the press. Instead, he allowed the press to set up its own regulator. He did, however, propose that a law should be passed to create what he called a recognition body and what most of us might call an auditor, whose job would be to ensure that the regulator met some basic standards and kept to them.
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The Prime Minister, David Cameron, has expressed “serious concerns and misgivings” over bringing in laws to underpin any new body to regulate the press. Mr Cameron told MPs that legislation backing a regulatory body underpinned by statute would “cross the Rubicon” by writing elements of press regulation into the law for the “first time“. Because of this, Mr Cameron, is “not convinced at this stage that statute is necessary to achieve Lord Justice Leveson’s objectives”. Continue reading
After eight months of hearings, 337 live witnesses and thousands of pages of written evidence and submissions, Lord Justice Leveson has delivered his much anticipated report on the culture, practices and ethics of the press. As expected, the Leveson Report contains damning criticisms of the press and the failure of the current system of self-regulation. Continue reading
For the seventh time in less than 70 years, there is a new report, commissioned by the Government, dealing with concerns about the press. It was sparked by public revulsion about a single act – the hacking of the mobile phone of a murdered teenager. Continue reading
If you’re interested in legally minded reports about how the press should be regulated, then there’s something you should read before tomorrow. Sir David Calcutt QC’s 1993 Review of Press Self-Regulation is worth another look, nearly twenty years on. Continue reading
Lord Justice Leveson will, later today, deliver the long awaited report of Part 1 of his Inquiry into the “Culture, Practice and Ethics of the Press”. The Report will be published at 1.30pm, some sixteen and half months after the Inquiry was announced. The report was delivered to the Prime Minister at midday on Wednesday 28 November 2012. Continue reading
The media and political world is eagerly awaiting tomorrow’s report of Part 1 of the Leveson Inquiry into the Culture, Practice and Ethics of the Press. The phrase “press regulation” is used in a variety of different senses. Very often, those involved in the debates talk past each other because they are talking about different types of regulation. This post deals with six different models of press regulation that have figured in the current debate. Continue reading
Journalisted is an independent, not-for-profit website built to make it easier for the public, to find out more about journalists and what they write about. It is run by the Media Standards Trust. It collects information automatically from the websites of British news outlets. Articles are indexed by journalist, based on the byline to the article. Keywords and statistics are automatically generated, and the site searches for any blogs or social bookmarking sites linking to each article. Continue reading
A YouGov poll commissioned by the Media Standards Trust has found overwhelming public support for a new system of independent regulation, established by law. When asked how newspapers in Britain should be regulated, 79% chose the option “There should be an independent press regulator, established by law, which deals with complaints and decides what sanctions there should be if journalists break agreed codes of conduct”. Only 9% believe that newspapers should establish their own body to do this. Continue reading
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