New laws for bloggers; the impartiality of reporters; radio presenters working for free episode artwork

EPISODE · Aug 6, 2014 · 25 MIN

New laws for bloggers; the impartiality of reporters; radio presenters working for free

from The Media Show · host BBC Radio 4

Public council meetings in England can now be filmed and tweeted about, following the introduction of new legislation. Local government secretary Eric Pickles today signed a Parliamentary order allowing press and public to film and digitally report from all public meetings of local government bodies. It follows a spate of cases where journalists and bloggers have been asked to stop filming or recording proceedings at meetings, despite the, 'open government' doctrine. Steve Hewlett talks to one blogger, ejected for reporting proceedings, and Ian Murray, Southern Daily Echo editor-in-chief and President of the Society of Editors about the opportunities this ruling could yield for local news. Jon Snow has stepped out from behind the neutrality of his newsreader's desk to present a piece to camera on his recent trip to Gaza, where he described being haunted by the horrific injuries inflicted on innocent children caught up in the conflict. The video has reopened a debate questioning where an appropropriate line lies between impartiality and so called, 'attachment journalism' for reporters. Steve is joined by David Loyn, the BBC's Afghanistan correspondent who says that, 'emotion is the stuff of propaganda', and Newsweek correspondent Alex Perry, on how they navigate the emotional turmoil of covering conflicts. A well-respected radio industry executive says he's concerned that some presenters in commercial radio are working for free. John Myers says he's been contacted by a number of people including some who work for national services at profitable major media organisations. He talks to Steve Hewlett about his calls for an industry review into pay. Producer: Katy Takatsuki.

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Aug 6, 2014

Embed this episode

Ready to play

New laws for bloggers; the impartiality of reporters; radio presenters working for free

0:00 25:08

No transcript for this episode yet

We transcribe on demand. Request one and we'll notify you when it's ready — usually under 10 minutes.

No similar episodes found.

No similar podcasts found.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is this episode of The Media Show?

This episode is 25 minutes long.

When was this The Media Show episode published?

This episode was published on August 6, 2014.

Can I download this The Media Show episode?

Yes. Use the download control on the episode player to save the publisher-provided media file.
URL copied to clipboard!