The secretary of the National Union of Journalists in Ireland has called on newspaper publishers to commit to a credible system of newspaper self regulation.
At the NUJ Irish delegate conference in Cork yesterday, Séamus Dooley said recent developments had shattered the faith of the public in journalism and the industry faced an uphill struggle to regain public trust and confidence.
"This is despite the fact that the vast majority of Irish journalists are fully committed to the highest ethical standards contained in the National Union of Journalists code of conduct," he said.
Minister for Justice Michael McDowell promised legislation to set up an independent press complaints council by Christmas after inaccurate coverage of Liam Lawlor's death last month.
Taoiseach Bertie Ahern led criticism of the reports, suggesting there had been a "race to the bottom" in journalistic standards in Ireland. The Minister for Justice said the heads of a Bill reforming libel laws and providing for an independent press complaints council and ombudsman would be published within two months.
But Mr Dooley said a Government-appointed press council would be unacceptable and not in the best interests of democracy.
He suggested all newspapers subscribing to a self-regulatory press council should adopt a logo to serve as a guarantee of commitment to ethical journalism.
"There have been suggestions that some UK-based newspapers may not subscribe to a regulatory model which has any form of statutory recognition," he said.
"It would be unfortunate if any newspaper group were to break the consensus which has emerged on this issue in the Irish media industry." He said a council funded by the industry could win public support provided it operated in a genuine and transparent manner.
"The concept of a logo would serve as a guarantee to readers that their newspaper was committed to the highest ethical standard of journalism," he added.
