The statements - a requirement under the terms of their legally-binding contract with IPSO - disclose information about the publishers’ approach to editorial standards; complaints-handling procedures; training processes and records of compliance, including details of any complaints that have been upheld by IPSO’s Complaints Committee.
The 81 statements cover the full calendar year, 2015, and, says IPSO, show the scope and variety of the publications produced by IPSO’s membership, from national titles like The Sun, Daily Mail and The Daily Telegraph, through to hundreds of local newspapers. In the magazine and online sector, it includes, highly specialised publications with subject matter ranging from cycling (Bike Biz and Cycling Weekly) to environmental management (The Recycler and Green Fleet) alongside glossies like GQ and Vogue.
The statements reflect the wide variety of membership and different approaches to editorial standards. The statements also highlight how the system of regulation is developing, with a number of publishers outlining examples of how they proactively taken steps to comply with the Code of Practice and learn from complaints. A number of publishers, such as Archant, The Guernsey Press, The Telegraph Media Group, Wyvex Media, Scottish Provincial Press, MNA, Johnston Press, Jersey Evening Post, Immediate Media Co. and DC Thomson have begun providing regular training for staff on the Editors’ Code of Practice.
The statement from Associated Newspapers sets out steps they have taken following two complaints which were resolved by mediation. Other publishers, such as The Barnsley Chronicle, Plenham Ltd, CN Group Limited and Independent News and Media have already provided journalists with copies of the revised Editors’ Code of Practice, issued on 1st January 2016 and therefore beyond the scope of the 2015 annual statement, or revised their internal manuals to reflect the new Code (Time Inc. (UK)).
Commenting, Sir Alan Moses, Chairman of IPSO, said: “The annual statements in respect of more than 2,500 publications are a now an established part of the UK press regulation calendar and a significant undertaking by both the press and IPSO. They are a transparent demonstration of IPSO’s regulatory functions of monitoring and improving compliance with the Editors’ Code and a significant acknowledgement of the authority of IPSO to scrutinise and monitor compliance with the standards the publishers have set themselves.”
