CODE OF PRACTICE
The News Security Group
In November
2000, APTN, BBC, CNN, ITN and Reuters formed the News Security Group
to establish common guidelines to protect their journalists working
in the field. They agreed a code of practice, and also agreed to
regularly share safety information and to work with other organisations,
including international agencies, to safeguard journalists in war
zones and other dangerous environments. With the addition of the International News Safety Insitute, the Code is now subscribed by 80 media organisations, journalist support groups and individuals. Speaking on behalf of the
group, Adrian van Klaveren, Head of Newsgathering, BBC News, says:
"We have all signed up to these principles and agreed that
safety can never be a competitive issue."
The Rory
Peck Trust supports this initiative and calls on other media organisations
to sign up to the Code of Practice as a matter of urgency, and make
the safety of their journalists, reporters and camera crews, both
staff and freelance, an absolute priority.
We publish
here the original Code of Practice and the list of signatories to
date.
- The preservation
of human life and safety is paramount. Staff and freelancers should
be made aware that unwarranted risks in pursuit of a story are
unacceptable and must be strongly discouraged. Assignments to
war zones or hostile environments must be voluntary and should
only involve experienced newsgatherers and those under their direct
supervision.
- All staff
and freelancers asked to work in hostile environments must have
access to appropriate safety training and retraining. Employers
are encouraged to make this mandatory.
- Employers
must provide efficient safety equipment to all staff and freelancers
assigned to hazardous locations, including personal issue kevlar
vest/jackets, protective headgear and properly protected vehicles
if necessary.
- All staff
and freelances should be afforded personal insurance while working
in hostile areas including cover against death and personal injury.
- Employers
to provide and encourage the use of voluntary and confidential
counselling for staff and freelances returning from hostile areas
or after the coverage of distressing events. (This is likely to
require some training of managers in the recognition of the symptoms
of post traumatic stress disorder.)
- Media companies
and their representatives are neutral observers. No member of
the media should carry a firearm in the course of their work.
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- We will work
together to establish a databank of safety information, including
the exchange of up to date safety assessments of hostile and dangerous
areas.
- We will work
with other broadcasters and other organisations to safeguard journalists
in the field
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SIGNATORIES:
Update May 2007
Australian
Broadcasting Corporation
ABC
(USA)
Aftenposten (Norway)
Agence France Presse
American Federation of Television and Radio Artists
Al Jazeera Network
Al Jazeera International
AP Television News
ARD
Asian News International (ANI)
Association of Norwegian Editors
BBC
The Boston Globe
CBC
(Canada)
CBS
(USA)
CNBC Arabiya
CNN International
Danish Broadcasting Corporation (DR)
Epoca Magazine (Brazil)
Financial Times
Fox News
The Guardian
Infoglobo (Brazil)
ITN
NBC
News
NOS
(Netherlands)
Radio Nederlands
REUTERS
RTL News (NL)
RTV Slovenia
SKY
News
SVT (Sweden)
TF1
(France)
TV2 (Denmark)
TV2
(Norway)
TV Globo (Brazil)
TVE (Spain)
Vlaamse Radio & Televisie (VRT)
WDR (Germany)
ZDF (Germany)
3
News (New Zealand)
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