MIGRAIN: Industries - Regulation

 Read the Factsheet and complete the following questions/tasks:

1) What is regulation and why do media industries need to be regulated?

Very few industries leave the organisations or companies who operate in that sector to their own devices. Systems of regulation are required to provide rules and regulations to ensure that organisations operate fairly.

2) What is OFCOM responsible for?

OFCOM is responsible for regulating broadcast media such as TV and Radio.

3) Look at the section on the OFCOM broadcasting code. Which do you think are the three most important sections of the broadcasting code and why?

Section 1: Protecting the Under-Eighteens - this is because children should not see things that they are not supposed to see it would affect and change their mindset and they are immature and they would not act is a responsible way, so they needed to be protected and kept away from things that they shouldn't be doing or watching.

Section 2: Harm and Offence- It could affect and influence some peoples mindsets and make hem violent 

Section 3: Crime

4) Do you agree with OFCOM that Channel 4 was wrong to broadcast 'Wolverine' at 6.55pm on a Sunday evening? Why?

Yes, because it was broadcasted before the watershed and it shouldn't have 

5) List five of the sections in the old Press Complaints Commission's Code of Practice. 

Section 1: Accuracy

Section 2: Opportunity to Reply

Section 3: Privacy*

Section 4: Harassment*

Section 5: Intrusion Into Grief and Shock

6) Why was the Press Complaints Commission criticised?

 Newspapers are not licenced – anybody can set one up and start publishing if they wish – so revoking a newspaper’s licence was not an option for the PCC. Unlike TV stations, newspapers have no obligation to be impartial and are free to support a particular political party if they wish.

7) What was the Leveson enquiry and why was it set up?

The “culture, practice and ethics of the press” was held, mainly as a result of the so-called phone hacking scandal. Glenn Mulcaire (a private investigator, employed by Goodman) were imprisoned for illegally intercepting phone calls connected to the royal family. Also 

8) What was the PCC replaced with in 2014?

On 8th September 2014, the PCC was replaced by the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO).

9) What is your opinion on press regulation? Is a free press an important part of living in a democracy or should newspapers face statutory regulation like TV and radio?

I think press regulation is partly important to a certain point they should always be respected to a certain point however if they do a big political mistake or maybe for example anti-diverse or racism . I do agree thought a free press is important if living in a democracy. 

10) Why is the internet so difficult to regulate?

Unlike TV and Newspapers, which are generally produced and consumed in the same country, the internet makes content available from all over the world so laws passed in the UK aiming to regulate music videos, are ineffective against material being hosted in other parts of the world.