NUJ calls for independent press council, ombudsman

The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) does not believe a Government-appointed press council would have the necessary independence or credibility to inspire public confidence in the industry.

Responding to the Report of the Legal Advisory Group on Defamation, the NUJ said it "strongly believes the media should be accountable", but that accountability should not be dependent on just the goodwill of the media owners, or Government control through a State-appointed press council.

Reaffirming the NUJ's case for an independent press council and a media ombudsman, Mr Seamus Dooley, the union's Irish secretary, said: "Failure to win a seat in the European Parliament or attendance at the Galway Races does not bestow special insights and I would be wary of handing to party hacks the task of setting standards of journalism in Ireland".

Criticising the newspaper owners' organisation, the National Newspapers of Ireland (NNI), Mr Dooley said some members of that organisation had resorted to chequebook journalism. Mr Dooley repeated his call on the NNI to "disown corrupt practices" which he said were driven by a commercial agenda "at the expense of journalistic standards".

Mr Dooley told NUJ members at the organisation's annual conference in Sligo at the weekend that the union rejected "the recent allegations made against journalists by the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform as a slur on our profession and on our colleagues in the Garda Síochána. But we also recognise that there is public unease at the recent invasions of privacy, reflected in the hounding of sports stars and refugee families in distress".

Outlining the NUJ's case for an ombudsman and press council, Mr Dooley said the office of the ombudsman would be funded by the newspaper industry but the ombudsman would report to the press council. The role of the ombudsman would be to deal with complaints from the public. The ombudsman would adjudicate and order appropriate action - either an apology, a retraction or right of reply and would have the right to insist on determining the prominence given to any apology.

The media ombudsman and press council would have legal protection and privilege to carry out their duties and the press council would also serve as a protection for the ombudsman against editors and owners who refused to co-operate or frustrated the work of the ombudsman's office. It is envisaged that the ombudsman would produce an annual report which would be circulated via the media.

Mr Dooley said he greatly regretted that the NNI had failed to involve the union in its consultative process but he said the union message was clear and unambiguous: "There will be no model of self-regulation without the co-operation and full participation of the NUJ."

He added: "Regulation of the press is too important to be left either to politicians or press barons".