Here’s an event that may well stimulate an interesting, and possibly heated, debate. David Wolfe, chair of the Press Recognition Panel (PRP), is to give an address entitled “What makes a good self regulator of the press?”
He will be joined by a panel at the LSE on 9 June. It marks the launch of the PRP’s nationwide consultation on how it should go about deciding whether press regulators meet the recognition criteria set out in the royal charter.
Other public events will take place over the course of six weeks in Belfast, Glasgow, Manchester, Durham, Birmingham and Cardiff.
Some two-and-a-half years after the Leveson report called for the creation of a new press regulator, two alternative regulators have emerged.
The Independent Press Standards Organisation (Ipso) was created by the majority of newspaper and magazine publishers. It has been operatng for six months under the chairmanship of a former judge, Sir Alan Moses.
The Guardian, Financial Times and Independent titles, along with some other smaller publishers, have decided not to sign Ipso contracts.
Ipso has made it clear that it will not seek recognition under the royal charter and therefore ignores the work of the PRP.
The other regulator is Impress, founded by Jonathan Heawood, a former director of the English branch of PEN International. He is the director and there is a seven-strong board (see here).
It lays claim to being more independent than Ipso and to being more Leveson-compliant. It has also announced - as the Guardian reports today - that it will seek recognition under the charter.
But no publisher has yet agreed to be regulated by Impress and it remains uncertain whether a regulator can apply for recognition when it lacks any members.
So the terms of the debate are obvious: Ipso or Impress? Charter recognition or charter snub?
Wolfe and the panel will have much to discuss at the LSE. The event kicks off at 6pm on Tuesday 9 June at the Thai Theatre in the LSE’s New Academic Building.
Attendance is free but space is limited, so it is necessary to register, which can be done here at Eventbrite.
