PCC year at a glance
April
MOD visit
A senior staff member visited the Ministry of Defence's Defence Operations Centre to talk about the role of the PCC and generally dealing with the media in an emergency. The PCC has sought to develop a relationship with the MOD, given the amount of (legitimate) media attention that can occur when soldiers die in active service.
The key for the PCC is to make itself available to help family members in those circumstances.
Accumulated inaccuracies raised breach of the Code of Practice
The PCC upheld a complaint from a family against The Sun, which had published two articles on the subject of the gender transition of a young child. While some of the inaccuracies may have been minor, the Commission ruled that their accumulation was significant.
Advisory notes
In April, they included:
‒ Passing on the request of a couple going through a divorce, who were concerned
about the presence of journalists at their home, that they not be contacted by
the press;
‒ Communicating the wishes of a celebrity couple that editors take care not to publish intrusive photographs of the mother and new baby. The couple also made clear that they would not seek publicity for their child, and requested that editors not publish identifi able pictures.