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Sir Christopher Meyer, chairman of the Press Complaints Commission (PCC) , has called for a digital kitemark-like logo on reputable news sites to combat issues of trust and reliability in the digital age.

Addressing the Scottish Society of Editors last Friday, he acknowledged a "crying need to be able to distinguish between what is rubbish and what is quality, between what is fantasy and what reliable", and held up the newly extended remit of the press code as a way of creating online quality control.

"The code must become the quality stamp, the seal of good housekeeping for the online editions of British newspapers and magazines: in short, a brand," he said.

"I hope the day is not far off when a small PCC logo will be visible in a corner of the screen on every electronic page of every British newspaper and magazine."

The logo call signals mounting activism on behalf of the PCC to straddle the digital arena, which Meyer admits is full of both "opportunity and anxiety" for those involved.

The issue of reliability online continues to concern some industry-watchers, who believe it is important that readers can differentiate between a news story that is the product of adequate research and reporting, and the trenchant but unsubstantiated rants of some blog postings.

The press code remit was extended in February 2007 to cover audio-visual content posted on the websites of newspapers and magazines.

The move marked a sea change in the way web coverage is seen, recognising that it comprises material that goes far beyond what is offered in printed form, and Meyer described it as "perhaps the most important decision since the PCC was set up in 1991".

The speech to the Scottish Society of Editors also sought to soothe fears among many in the industry that the PCC's extension of its remit would bring about a flood of new complaints.

To date, the PCC has issued a single ruling on audiovisual material, which was first published, appropriately enough, on a Scottish newspaper website.

Meyer, a former British ambassador to Washington whose frank and controversial memoir, DC Confidential, provoked government criticism after its publication in 2005, also reiterated his commitment to the principle of self-regulation.

"It is in principle unacceptable, and inconsistent with a fully functioning democracy, that the editorial content of newspapers and magazines should be regulated by an agency of the state. Technology does not change that one jot."

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Written by
James Knight

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