Section 4:
Regulation and Ethical/ Legal
Constraints
Key words:
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Ethics
Data protection act
Copyright
Regulation
Regulatory body
Commissioning
Libel
Ofcom
Press Complaints Commission
Watershed
This section is about
How Media is held responsible for it’s content.
The main three things you will be asked about it
• Legal constraints
• Ethical constraints
• regulation
Example questions:
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Identify the regulatory body from one of the industries you have studied. You must name the
industry (2 marks).
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With reference to both of the media industries you have studied explain why media
regulation is important(4 marks)
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Explain why media regulation is important. (4 marks)
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Offer two examples, one from each of the media industries you have studied, where
consideration of legal constraints would be important in the creation of a media product (4
marks).
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Offer two examples, one from each of the media industries you have studied, where the
producers of a media product may have to consider ethical issues which might effect the
content ? (4 marks).
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Give one example from one of your media industries where a regularity body has had to deal
with a complaint explain how they resolved that complaint. (2 marks)
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What specific regulation issues have caused problems for companies within your industry.Talk
about both industries. (4 marks)
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How does regulation in your industry differ between different countries?
Ethics in the media
There are so many debates about what is right and wrong to show and say in
the media:
TV: Watershed
Issues of media ethics include:
• Bad language
• Peoples privacy (paparazzi and phone hacking a good example)
• Depiction of sex and violence
• Depiction of stereotypes
• Racial and sexual discrimination
• Product placement
• Blasphemy
• Mis-representation of religious groups
CLIP
http://www.christian.org.uk/news/bbcaccused-of-anti-christian-bias-by-viewers/
Legal constraints:Data Protection
Act
All companies that handle personal information about individual (such as the
media) must look after that info under the rules of the Data Protection Act
1998.
The act contains eight “Data Protection Principles”. These specify that
personal data must be:
1. Processed fairly and lawfully.
2. Obtained for specified and lawful purposes.
3. Adequate, relevant and not excessive.
4. Accurate and up to date.
5. Not kept any longer than necessary.
6. Processed in accordance with the “data subject’s” (the individual’s) rights.
7. Securely kept.
8. Not transferred to any other country without adequate protection in situ.
Legal constraints:Copywrite
Copyright law placed by the governments in most countries. It
means that the creator of the work has exclusive rights to it and
giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it and
owns it.
Generally, people have the "right to copy“ other peoples work
as long as they give the copyright holder the right to be credited
for the work-through a reference for example.
Media regulation.
WHY???
Regulatory organisations such as OFCOM (TV) and the
Press Complaints Commission(NEWS) are essential in
order to make sure that the media industries do not
overstep the mark or break any laws, if they do, are
held to account by members of the public.
Regulating Television – Ofcom
Ofcom; or Office of Communications is the governmentapproved regulatory authority for the telecommunication
industries in the United Kingdom.
They regulate :
• TV
• Radio
The Ofcom Broadcasting Code of Practice publishes
guidelines about suitability of programming and advertising
for different audiences.
Positives of Regulating
Television – Ofcom
Watershed
• The watershed (created by OFCOM) is a term used
to identify the times when television programmes
should not be broadcast that might be unsuitable
for children.
• The watershed is at 2100. Material unsuitable for
children should not, in general, be shown before
2100 or after 0530. The
What specific regulation issues have caused problems
for companies within television?
Voting on X Factor – judges seen to be keeping unpopular acts in
to keep ratings high
Frankie Boyle making jokes about Katie Price and her children
Racist bullying of Shilpa Shetty on Celebrity Big Brother led to
45,000 complaints to Ofcom. Channel 4 was criticised for not
dealing with the incidents because they were boosting the ratings
of the show.
SHOW CLIP:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWk1rh4swv8
http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/newsid_6680000/newsid_6688100/6688175.stm
Regulating newspapers?:
• The Press Complaints Commission(PCC). Is Funded by
the newspaper industry, the PCC acts as an
independent regulatory body.
• There is no government run regulator because the
press is such an old and powerful institution-there is
meant to be freedom of the press
• There is no statutory regulator for the Press as there is
for TV. The laws of the country, which includes libel
law, applies to all the Press as it does to everyone.
What is libel?
The simplest definition is that libel is telling lies about someone.
It is possible for a newspaper to libel individuals, groups or
organizations. To commit libel a newspaper (or broadcaster) would
have to print something that is defamatory. The courts normally apply
these criteria to test if a statement is defamatory.
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Does it expose a person to hatred, ridicule or contempt?
Does it injure the person in his or her profession or trade?
Does it cause a person to be shunned or avoided?
Does it reduce a person in the eyes of right thinking people
Libel cases:
Frankie Boyle won £54,650 in
damages after a High Court
jury found that the Daily Mirror
had libeled him by calling him a
“racist comedian”.
Kerry Katona won libel
against the Sunday Mirror
after they claimed she was
a prostitute when she was
younger.
Kiera Knightly was accused by the
Daily Mail of having an eating disorder.
They also made out she was
responsible for the death of a young
girl who suffered from anorexia.
The Press Complaints
Commission(PCC).
Funded by the newspaper industry, the PCC acts
as an independent regulatory body. NOT
GOVERNMENT REGULATED!!!
If you have a complaint about inaccuracy or
misrepresentation in a newspaper then you
write to the PCC, who will investigate the
complaint. The PCC can fine a newspaper and
order it to publish a retraction of a story or to
publish the corrected facts.
http://www.pcc.org.uk/
Press Complaints Commissions
Their code of practise is that:
• Stories should be presented accurately
• People have the opportunity to reply to stories
• Journalists should not harass or pursue people
• Journalists should not intrude into grief and shock
• Children should be kept out of the press, not
photographed and allowed to attend school safely
• Clandestine devices such as bugging equipment should
not be used
• Sources of information have the right to remain
confidential
What specific regulation issues have caused problems
for companies within print?
• In October 2009 a journalist called Jan Moir wrote an article for the Daily
Mail about the death of Stephen Gately. The PCC received over 22,000
complaints.
• Stephen Gately was a member of Boyzone who had a shock heart attack
and died.
• The journalist said that his death was “more than a little sleazy“- she
accused his sexuality, his lifestyle and drug taking as a cause of death- this
was all untrue.
• In the end the PCC rejected the complaints made-this was very unpopular.
• This prompted discussion about free speech
Useful timeline:
• The journalist ended
http://www.gua
rdian.co.uk/med
up sincerely apologising in a new article.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_pv7M8CE54
ia/2010/feb/18/
jan-moirstephen-gately
What specific regulation issues have caused problem
for companies within print : PHONE HACKING
• The PCC were criticised for how it dealt with it
• In July 2011, it was revealed that the phones of more
than 4,000 people have been identified as victims of
phone hacking by the NoW.
• Prime Minister David Cameron set up the Leveson
Inquiry to see whether changes need to happen to the
way British newspapers work.
• Lord leveson says that in PCC are ineffective and will
create a new independent regulator with powers to
impose million pound fines on UK publishers and
demand upfront apologies from them.
SHOW CLIP
http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/20534795
Regulating bodies
in America
• Television- The government regulates it- Federal
Communications Commission (FCC)
• Newspapers-Like in the UK the news isn’t government
regulated-it has it’s own PCC.
List of legal constraints that all media
industries have to obey
• Copywrite
• Libel
• Data protection act
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Obscenity
Defamation of character (slander)
Blasphemy
Race discrimination/sex discrimination
Invasion of privacy
These may effect what they write about or show to the
public.
Regulation and Ethical/ Legal
Constraints: a summary
• Regulators ensure that the media isn’t offending anyone or doing anything
unfair they ensure that laws are being followed. They give the public
somewhere to complain to.
• All media industries have to abide by Libel law and the data protect act
1998 they must also consider ethical issues when creating a product (such
as fair representation) .
• TV is regulated by OFCOM- this is government run (example CBB Shilpa
Shetty)
• The press is regulated by the PCC which is independently run
Following phone hacking scandal the Leveson Enquiry has decided that the
press needs to be more strongly regulated. He said he wants a new
independent regulator with powers to impose million pound fines on UK
publishers and demand upfront apologies from them.
Have a go at
answering the questions:
Identify the regulatory body from one of the industries you have studied. You must name the industry (2
marks).
With reference to both of the media industries you have studied explain why media regulation is
important(4 marks)
Explain why media regulation is important. (4 marks)
Offer two examples, one from each of the media industries you have studied, where consideration of legal
constraints would be important in the creation of a media product (4 marks).
Offer two examples, one from each of the media industries you have studied, where the producers of a
media product may have to consider ethical issues which might effect the content ? (4 marks).
Give one example from one of your media industries where a regularity body has had to deal with a
complaint explain how they resolved that complaint. (2 marks)
What specific regulation issues have caused problems for companies within your industry.Talk about both
industries. (4 marks)
How does regulation in your industry differ between different countries?