PCC: Overview
What does the PCC do?
- The Press Complaints Commission (PCC) is an independent self-regulatory body which deals with complaints about the editorial content of newspapers and magazines (and their websites).
- They use the 16 clauses as their guidlines.
- The PCC will investigate when they receive a complaint by someone directly affected.
- The PCC will attempt to help the editor and complainant to agree on a way to resolve the issue, such as a published apology or clarification.
How does the system work?
- The system is not a legal one, but rather a voluntary agreement between editors.
- The 16 clauses which act as guidlines are drawn up by a group of editors.
- Non of the PCC staff are connected to the industry.
What does the code of practice cover?
- An editor is expected to take responsibility for all the stories and photographs that appear in their publication and to ensure that they comply with the code.
- The code does not cover issues of taste and decency. This is because the PCC recognises that in a democratic society we have the right to free press.
- However, people can choose which newspaper is to their tastes, so with advertising such as billboards, then matters of taste and decency apply more.
How is the PCC funded?
- Funded through the Press Standards Board of Finance (aka PressBof), which is responsible for collecting money from newspapers and magazines in the UK.
- Newspapers and magazines pay a sum proportional to their papers circulation - so big newspapers pay much more than small local papers.
- PCC does not receive any money from government.
History of the PCC:
- The PCC was set up in 1991 and replaced the Press Council, which had been set up in 1953.
- During the 1980s, a small number of publications failed to observe the basic ethics of journalism, and many MPs lost condfidence in the Press Council.
- So the PCC was set up to prove "that non-statutory regulation can be made to work effectively".
Who complains to the PCC and what about?
- The PCC will acept complaints from anyone who thinks an article involving them breaches the code in some way.
- A number of celebrities have used the PCC's service in recent years, but most complaints are from odinary people. (In 2007, 95.8% came from odinary members of the public.)
- The code provides special attention to particularly vunerable groups such as children, hospital patients and minority groups.
Why is the PCC important?
- In a democratic society, we should have the right to free press, so the press should not subject to control by the law or govenrment.
- The PCC is independant and voluntary to ensure this.
- The PCC still protects the public, and is fast and free.
No comments:
Post a Comment