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MORE INFORMATION
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites
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This guide outlines the issues which teachers taking part in BBC News School Report must consider before putting students' video, audio, text, photographs, graphics music etc on a website. If students have followed the lesson plans and taken the
Keeping News Safe and Legal Quiz
in lesson six, they should have a good idea of what they should and shouldn't report, but teachers should check and amend their work before it "goes live".
As the broadcaster, the school is responsible for content published on the school website and the following guide provides a good grounding. However, if teachers are uncertain, it's best to avoid any potential risks and play safe. If you are unsure, please
contact the School Report team
for advice. They may be able to help, but remember that the school remains responsible for any material which is published.
CHILD PROTECTION
Only use children's FIRST names One of the main aims of the project is to give students a real audience for their work, and many will obviously want to publish their names alongside their reports. However, for child protection reasons, schools must not publish the surname of someone under the age of 18 on their web pages which relate to School Report. This is to minimise the risk of enough information being disclosed that could enable a stranger to identify and locate a child. Given that traffic to the school website is likely to increase, by virtue of a link from the BBC website, schools that use children's surnames on other pages on the school website might like to reconsider their policy. Obtain parental consent for ALL children It is the school's responsibility to obtain the signed consent of the parents or guardians of the students taking part in the project AND any other children appearing on the School Report web pages. The BBC will provide a model form to send to parents and a head teacher consent form, which should be returned to the BBC once all parental consent has been gained. Completed parental consent forms should be kept at school. Accompany BBC staff in the classroom BBC staff working on the School Report project have been cleared by the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB). However, they should not be left alone with students, in the same way that any adult who is not a teacher at the school should not be unaccompanied. Contact should be maintained via the teacher, so students should not ask BBC staff for their personal details, such as a phone number or email address, or give them their own details. Risk assessments will be undertaken for all BBC activities and students will not be directed by BBC staff to do anything which would compromise their safety.
TASTE AND DECENCY
Don't report anything which makes you uncomfortable Some subjects might be considered inappropriate for children to cover, for example stories involving sex, violence and swearing. Views differ greatly, so teachers should be able to justify publishing a report should there be any complaints. They should also refer to their own school policies in this area. Students may wish to report subjects such as a natural disasters or the anniversary of a bombing. Some teachers may deem this to be upsetting while others may regard this as part-and-parcel of making the news. It is worth remembering that what may be fine as a class discussion will seem different when published on a website which the public can access. Teachers should also take into account the tone of a report. It would be inappropriate for a student to report a tragic accident in a light-hearted manner. The risk of imitative behaviour should also be considered - for example, whether a report about drugs would enable children to glean inappropriate information about buying, preparing and taking illegal substances.
DEFAMATION
Report the facts, NOT rumours Unless they can prove it is true, students should not report anything which would damage someone's reputation. After all, they would not like to be bad-mouthed themselves. If someone makes a legal complaint that they have been defamed, the school could be taken to court. Without sufficient evidence to prove the truth of a report, the school may be ordered to pay compensation. In particular, students should treat "celeb gossip" with care. Just because it is in the news, it doesn't mean it's true.
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DEFAMATION CASES
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There are many instances of media companies being heavily fined. For example, in July 2007, Coleen McLoughlin was awarded £20,000 in damages from a newspaper after it admitted printing false statements about her birthday party. Using the phrase "according to ..." does not put the school in the clear. Each repetition of a defamatory statement is treated as a fresh case. Using "allegedly" doesn't help either. Someone might still think less of a person who had "allegedly lied". It may not be as bad as calling them a liar, without proof, but it would still be defamatory. Report controversial issues with balance The law surrounding defamation is not, however, designed to prevent the reporting of controversial news. Such issues often make the most interesting reports, as long as they fairly represent both sides of an argument. Express your opinion in reviews, NOT in news A journalist's main job is to present the facts in an impartial way. But while they should not should not express their own views in a news report, their opinion is a necessary part of a review. Reviewers are allowed to have strong views. Reporting that you thought an actor's "performance was unconvincing because he was far too old for the part" for example, would not defamatory, as long as: - You watched the film. You can't pass someone's thoughts off as your own.
- Your opinion was honestly-held. You are not just saying it to make the review more exciting.
- Your opinion was based on fact. You would need to include evidence of the actor's age and the age of his role.
CRIMINAL LAW
Avoid crime stories
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CRIMINAL LAW CASES
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Journalists undergo a significant amount of legal training before they report stories about crime. Students may wish to report high-profile murders and robberies, but the safest option is to avoid them completely. The law around reporting crime is incredibly complicated and, among other considerations, journalists must: - Avoid prejudicing members of a jury
- Protect the identity of children who appear in youth courts
- Protect the identity of victims of sexual offences
COPYRIGHT
Only use YOUR OWN photos, music etc If you take a photograph or compose a piece of music, you have the RIGHT to say how it is used. A person who makes a COPY of someone else's work and uses it without their permission is breaking the law.
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COPYRIGHT CASES
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Copyright law protects material such as photos, video, sound recordings, writing, music, song lyrics and drawings. Breaking the law could result in a heavy fine. When you publish content on a school website, you must make sure you have the right to use it. The safest option is to make all the content yourself, then you own the copyright and you can determine how it is used.
In addition, the BBC has gained permission for School Reporters to use: - The music which introduces the BBC News (on a CD sent out to schools)
- Photographs which appear on BBC News web pages (but not other BBC sites) which have one of the following credits in the bottom, right-hand corner: AP, PA, AFP, Getty. If students crop these images, they must reinstate the credit.
Even though School Report is a BBC project, the school cannot use any other material from the BBC website. Material on the site is often owned by someone else and the BBC has limited rights to use it - sometimes so limited that it can't even be used by another part of the BBC! You should also avoid photographing a poster or recording students singing song lyrics, if you intend to publish them on the web. The copyright belongs to the poster company and the composer, and copying their work without their permission could be breaking the law. Copying for education versus copying for broadcast Teachers are permitted to copy some materials for educational purposes, but they do not have this privilege when it comes to publishing them on the internet. Obtain permission for review extracts The law allows you to use a small extract of a film, book, song etc in a review, but there are restrictions on how much you can use and for how long it can remain on a website. The safest option is to obtain permission to use an extract, and if you can't, to avoid using it.
PRIVACY
Ask yourself: If that were me, would I want it recorded?
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HUMAN RIGHTS
The Human Rights Act (1998) introduced into British law the European Convention on Human Rights, which states: "Everyone has the right for his private and family life, his home and his correspondence."
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The law says that everyone has the right to keep some information about themselves, and their family, private. So, for example, you wouldn't film in someone's home, record their phone conversations or publish their emails without their permission. People in public places can't expect the same degree of privacy as in their own homes. But what if, for example, you were filming in a street and you captured someone receiving medical treatment? There are some circumstances where people can reasonably expect privacy in a public place. Ask yourself: If that were me, would I want it recorded? Also, look closely at your footage when you get back to school as you may have captured something like this in the background, without realising it at the time. If you are recording or taking photographs in a public place, you should do your best to make it obvious, to give people the choice of e.g. walking in front of, or behind, the camera. This is particularly important if you are using small cameras, mobile phones or webcams. In such cases, you might need to use notices to let people know what you are doing. Before setting off to record in a "public" place, double check that it's not privately owned. For example, you might need to obtain permission before recording in shopping malls, railway stations or airports.
Please note that this guide is by no means exhaustive. It should be noted that BBC journalists adhere to a 226-page book covering legal and other editorial issues.
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