#soe10: New Society of Editors president calls for Ofcom to be scrapped

Robin Esser addressing the Society of Editors conference earlier today. Photo: Barrie Marshall

The new president of the Society of Editors has called for broadcast regulator Ofcom to be scrapped and for the industry to regulate itself.

Giving his inaugural address at the Society of Editors conference in Glasgow today, Robin Esser, also executive managing editor of the Daily Mail, said there is no longer a case for official regulation of television.

"The UK government could save a lot of taxpayers' money by abolishing the broadcast regulator, Ofcom altogether and encouraging a system of self-regulation which the industry itself should pay for," he said.

"Matters of cross ownership, plurality and media domination - such as the Murdoch bid to take total control of Sky - can and should be dealt with by the Competition Commission which was created to investigate just this sort of problem. There is even a European Competition Commission – how many more bodies do we need at our expense to sort this important matter out?

"Statutory regulation of TV was based on the limited availability of bandwidth which created the need for licences. Today licences for journalism should have no place in a modern democratic society.

"Ofcom's annual budget is £143 million – much of it being taxpayer's money - and they currently employ 873 people. The Press Complaint Commission's annual budget is under £2 million and they employ 15 and a half people! The tax payers' contribution to the PCC is nil!

"All these restrictions on the media in Britain send out the wrong message abroad, encouraging control of the news in other parts of the world and bringing comfort to those who wish to keep their populations in ignorance."

During his speech, Esser also outlined the main plans the Society of Editors has for the future, which include the monitoring of attempts to cap lawyer's success fees, the libel law reform and privacy law development.

"So far the coalition has talked a good game," he said. "We must ensure that the talk becomes a reality.

"Our watchfulness has to go beyond government though. As the Olympics draw near sports authorities are trying to extend their control over the way sports events are reported by the national, regional and local papers and by the TV networks.

"Already we have had suggestions that clubs will try to control what pictures are taken of events and issue their own carefully edited images to bolster their sponsors and burnish their own reputations.

"We have made great progress with ACPO and co-operation between the police and the media. But we must keep up the pressure in this area too.

"Vigilance on all these issues and many others which restrict the public's right to know, will be our watchword."

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