Michelle Stanistreet: 'It would never work'
Credit: Yui Mok/PADaily Mail editor Paul Dacre's proposal for a new industry controlled system of press cards is "ridiculous" and "would never work", the National Union of Journalists' general secretary said today.
Michelle Stanistreet said the proposal was "akin to the licensing of journalists", placed too much responsibility on individual journalists and failed to tackle the wider issues of press culture and practice.
Stanistreet told the Leveson inquiry: "I think it's a ridiculous idea. I don't think it would work in practice – I don't understand the premise behind it."
She added: "This is yet another example of how a very high-profile influential member of the industry is trying to pin the blame on individual journalists. They want a system in place that is run by the industry and controlled by the industry, where the blame lies with the ordinary reporter.
"It does absolutely nothing to move us forward from where we are today and it doesn't tackle at all the issues about the culture, practices and ethics of the press. It's not at all a proposal we would support.
"It would never work and it doesn't account for the fact that journalists work in a culture that is imposed on them. It's pretty much akin to the licensing of journalists, which the NUJ would absolutely oppose and would damage press freedom in the UK."
Stanistreet was asked to explain how a private investigator, Derek Webb, managed to become a member of the NUJ and obtain a press card.
Webb described himself on his application form as a freelance researcher, and Stanistreet said the proposer and seconder "believed the person to be doing journalistic work".
She said: "No I don't believe he was eligible for membership of the NUJ. I also find it staggering that an organisation [News International] would instruct a private detective who's been with them for a long period of time to suddenly transform themselves into a journalist and secure one of our press cards.
"I find the whole thing staggering – the conceit of it from an organisation that does not let the independent union for journalists across its threshold."
Earlier this week, Dacre suggested media owners registered their reporters for a centralised industry-run accreditation scheme – restricting access to the press card to "ethical and proper" journalists.
Neil Turner, vice-chairman of the British Press Photographers Association, warned against having one central issuer of press cards because of the diverse range of newsgatherers who need the card.
The BPPA, which represents about 800 photographers, almost half of whom work entirely on a freelance basis, is one of the "gatekeepers" with the ability to issue cards.
Turner told the inquiry earlier this week: "The gatekeepers are a deliberately diverse bunch and they operate in such a way that no single person has to apply through one single route.
"That's a really important principle. If as a photographer you fall foul of one particular organisation you can apply through another."
He said the existing press card scheme already had the ability to suspend and cancel members' cards in the event of gross misconduct.
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