Newspaper regulation essay
What are the arguments for and against statutory regulation of the newspaper industry?
Some might argue against statutory regulation because the amount of freedom that the press has is limited. Putting regulation on the press and journalist stops them from actually investigating the truth and letting out the truth. If the UK had regulation on the newspaper industry it would make it very biased and it protect the government from telling the public the truth. Furthermore, if the UK limits freedom we would be similar to countries like North Korea where they have no freedom in the industry and have to check if they are allowed to publish any story there write. Adding on, freedom of speech in a democratic society such as the UK would not exist if regulation was added because it is dictating whether or not we get the right information or not.
However, some might agree with this because of scandals like the phone hacking scandal in 2006. This scandal was when a young got killed and the News of the world hacked into the dead girls, Milly Dowler, phone giving the family and the police false hope that she was still alive. This scandal made Milly Dowler and her family victims of the press intrusion and invasion of privacy. Also, the paper that done this was shutdown because of this sandal. However, this was not seen as a punishment because it opened up again in 6 months under a different name. This shows that legal action should have been taken because if it was the journalist and the News of the world would have been taken to court and punished legally.
On the other hand, some might disagree with the statement because with example such as the phone hacking scandal you can take it to the police and they can sort it out. There is legislation for invasion of privacy hence allowing the public to take things to police if such things happen. Celebrities have to deal with this everyday and they shouldn't just expect the press to speak about them in a positive manner because audience are not interested in that; they are interested if something bad happens to a celebrity. For example, when the police raided Cliff Richards House while he was on holiday and told the press so they can come and film it. Celebrities are able to take legal action with the money they have hence the no need for statutory regulation on the newspaper industry.
Some might agree with the question because innocent people are victims of harassment in the newspaper. Journalist always put work in front of the privacy and needs of others and they usually post lies or negative points about people. Even though there are police who can take matters into there hands. Journalist bribe themselves out of trouble. This is shows that innocent people do not really get justice out of this because journalist are not getting legally punished for there actions. An example would be the innocent man who was labelled as a being a murderer because he was funny looking. This shows how journalist can twist stories to make them interesting towards the audience. If statutory regulation was put on the newspaper industry it would stop journalist from taking advantage of innocent people and making them seem as if they are horrible citizens.
In conclusion, I don't think we need statutory regulation on newspapers because we as the pubic expect the truth from newspaper when they publish a story and if there is regulation it stops journalist and the press from telling the truth about certain matters. Furthermore, if the government put regulations on the newspaper industry they will do it to protect them so that their reputation is not damaged. However, small independent companies such as IPSO helped the newspaper industry to stop taking innocent people for granted. They make sure that newspapers post public apologies on the front page to people if they feel that a a story posted about them is offensive in any way.
Some might argue against statutory regulation because the amount of freedom that the press has is limited. Putting regulation on the press and journalist stops them from actually investigating the truth and letting out the truth. If the UK had regulation on the newspaper industry it would make it very biased and it protect the government from telling the public the truth. Furthermore, if the UK limits freedom we would be similar to countries like North Korea where they have no freedom in the industry and have to check if they are allowed to publish any story there write. Adding on, freedom of speech in a democratic society such as the UK would not exist if regulation was added because it is dictating whether or not we get the right information or not.
However, some might agree with this because of scandals like the phone hacking scandal in 2006. This scandal was when a young got killed and the News of the world hacked into the dead girls, Milly Dowler, phone giving the family and the police false hope that she was still alive. This scandal made Milly Dowler and her family victims of the press intrusion and invasion of privacy. Also, the paper that done this was shutdown because of this sandal. However, this was not seen as a punishment because it opened up again in 6 months under a different name. This shows that legal action should have been taken because if it was the journalist and the News of the world would have been taken to court and punished legally.
On the other hand, some might disagree with the statement because with example such as the phone hacking scandal you can take it to the police and they can sort it out. There is legislation for invasion of privacy hence allowing the public to take things to police if such things happen. Celebrities have to deal with this everyday and they shouldn't just expect the press to speak about them in a positive manner because audience are not interested in that; they are interested if something bad happens to a celebrity. For example, when the police raided Cliff Richards House while he was on holiday and told the press so they can come and film it. Celebrities are able to take legal action with the money they have hence the no need for statutory regulation on the newspaper industry.
Some might agree with the question because innocent people are victims of harassment in the newspaper. Journalist always put work in front of the privacy and needs of others and they usually post lies or negative points about people. Even though there are police who can take matters into there hands. Journalist bribe themselves out of trouble. This is shows that innocent people do not really get justice out of this because journalist are not getting legally punished for there actions. An example would be the innocent man who was labelled as a being a murderer because he was funny looking. This shows how journalist can twist stories to make them interesting towards the audience. If statutory regulation was put on the newspaper industry it would stop journalist from taking advantage of innocent people and making them seem as if they are horrible citizens.
In conclusion, I don't think we need statutory regulation on newspapers because we as the pubic expect the truth from newspaper when they publish a story and if there is regulation it stops journalist and the press from telling the truth about certain matters. Furthermore, if the government put regulations on the newspaper industry they will do it to protect them so that their reputation is not damaged. However, small independent companies such as IPSO helped the newspaper industry to stop taking innocent people for granted. They make sure that newspapers post public apologies on the front page to people if they feel that a a story posted about them is offensive in any way.
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