The Hutton report into the death of weapons expert Dr David Kelly is a wake-up call for the whole journalism industry - not just the BBC, according to a media watchdog group.

MediaWise, a charity that provides advice, information, research and training on media ethics, is warning against taking a "flyer" with stories - running them before the full facts come out simply to beat the opposition.

And it recommended a full right of reply - with a willingness to admit to mistakes - as the way forward.

MediaWise director Mike Jempson said: "The temptation to confuse conjecture with fact, over-egg the pudding, and run with a rumour rather than risk losing an edge over the competition by double checking all the facts, is common throughout the trade - especially when commercial advantage rather than the public interest rules the day."

He said that a willingness to admit to mistakes, and alert the public to them, was the best way to convince people of the publication's primary concern to get the facts right.

He said: "It should be a cause of great concern to all journalists that the most trusted journalistic institution in the world should have been found wanting.

"Rather than rush to its defence or join in the kicking it has received, newsrooms everywhere should be considering how they can help to rebuild the compact of trust that should exist between citizens and journalists.

"It would help if all newspapers and magazines introduced a regular 'Corrections' column, so mistakes can be rectified quickly.

"There is no harm in providing a right of reply - many European countries do. Broadcasters could strengthen their own on-air review of journalism. We would all relish the return of programmes like C4's 'Hard News'."

MediaWise is preparing to publish a report on complaint procedures, Satisfaction Guaranteed?, and could bring in an online forum for debate about media ethics.

If the charity's funding allows, there could also be a new online right of reply facility so that journalists and the public can check whether the protagonists in major stories have evidence that contradicts the media version of events.

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