Britain Revises Media Curbs
Britain’s press watchdog, the Press Complaints Commission, on Thursday outlined a new code of practice and urged the nation’s media to adopt the tougher voluntary guidelines. The revisions, prompted by the death of Princess Diana, cover the following five main points:
HARASSMENT
* Ban publication of pictures obtained through “persistent pursuit” or “unlawful behavior.”
* Make editors check how freelance material was obtained.
* Encourage photo agencies to follow the code of practice.
CHILDREN
* Ban media intrusion for young people unless there is an overriding public interest, or they consent to take part in a story.
* Ban payments to minors for stories.
* Ban stories about the private lives of children just because their parents are in the public eye.
PRIVACY
* Define private life to put health, home life and family relationships beyond the reach of intrusion unless there is an overriding public interest.
* Expand definition of “private place” to include places where people might rightly expect to be free from media attention.
PUBLIC INTEREST
* Increase the threshold of public interest which justifies intruding on someone’s privacy from “public interest” to “overriding public interest.”
INTRUSION INTO GRIEF
* Exercise discretion to protect families in grief or shock.
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