There has been an “unprecedented” level of physical threats against reporters in the UK.
As a result, the National Council for the Training of Journalists has pledged to develop a new resource offering safety guidance for journalists.
Physical safety was the main point of discussion at its panel meeting, following the violent disorder that began in Southport and spread across the UK in July last year.
They were sparked by untrue claims posted on social media about the suspected stabbings of three young children.
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“We were already aware that an ugly situation was brewing and that there could be a safety issue as one of our reporters had received threats and we were receiving unpleasant calls. But we were still caught by surprise,” said Maria Breslin, Editor of the Liverpool Echo, who was invited to share her experiences.
“We were staffing a vigil initially but things changed very quickly – we were not expecting things to escalate. During that night, one of our journalists was attacked physically, his glasses were broken and his things were stolen. I noticed something I had never seen before where the journalists were considered part of the problem.”
She added:
“From then on, the situation escalated from one day to the next and we acted quickly to put guidelines and measures in place to protect people so we were more prepared the next day. We had a safety app internally and everyone had to use it.
“We learned a lot very quickly. We also had to look after those who were working long nights and we had people who did not want to be involved with the coverage so we had to balance the needs of everyone, and play to people’s strengths.”
The NCTJ said it would work closely with members of the charity’s employer-led safety and resilience advisory panel to produce guidelines that will feed into the training, which will be made available and accessible to all journalists via the Journalism Skills Academy.
“We were also caught unaware and at its peak, we had 15 teams covering the riots across the different channels. It was chaotic on the first night – we were just getting through it and making sure everyone was safe. The next day, we had a debrief and put a rigid structure in place to ensure the reporting teams were protected,” added Panel member Alex Perkins, Head of Safety, Security and High Risk, at ITN, ITV and Channel 4.
The NCTJ Safety and Resilience Advisory Panel was set up in 2023 in response to the ongoing threat to journalists.
“The riots were a stark reminder of the dangers frontline journalists face while carrying out their vital work. Through the efforts of our safety and resilience advisory panel, the NCTJ is committed to ensuring that all journalists have access to the training and resources needed to protect themselves in volatile reporting environments,” explained Joanne Forbes, Chief Executive at the NCTJ.
“We will develop this new training resource and guidelines based on the panel’s recommendations, reinforcing our commitment to safeguard journalists across all platforms.”
The NCTJ’s research paper Journalists at Work, published last year, reported that just over half of journalists have experienced abuse, harassment or violence in their work.
