The editor of a regional daily newspaper has raised questions about whether the use of social media by journalists should come under the Press Complaint Commission’s remit.

Keith Perch, editor of the Leicester Mercury, sets out in his blog how he views social media – saying he thinks professional usage by his team should come under the PCC code.

He said staff contracts at the Mercury include a written requirement to abide by the Editors’ Code of Practice, but it is not clear how the code relates to online work such as Twitter and blogs.

Keith said he separates social media into two categories of use – personal and professional – and he does not believe he has any part to play in overseeing personal usage.

He writes: “I believe that any use of social media sites, including Twitter, in a professional capacity, ie where the member of staff links their usage directly to their job, should be treated in the same way as a column of the newspaper.

“As a columnist, the journalist gets far more freedom and is able to express an opinion.

“However, as a columnist their work is subject to my editing. I reserve the right to edit their posts.

“In practice, I never see their posts until after they have been published, but staff know that I am reviewing them and, therefore, I believe, they take this into consideration before publication.

“I have not had to intervene in any posts so far. I regularly read all staff blogs and have a ‘list’ of Mercury journalists set up on Twitter and I review their posts every day.”

Comments

Nick Turner (26/07/2010 10:40:25)
The PCC is reviewing this very subject at the moment.
I am sure they would welcome Keith’s input