Law Commission recommends single watchdog for old media, new media

The Law Commission has recommended to Parliament that there be a single regulatory authority covering broadcast, print, and online media.

Its proposed News Media Standards Authority should be independent from the government, the commission says, with an emphasis on self-regulation. Membership should be voluntary.

The Law Commission tabled its report The News Media Meets 'New Media': Rights, Responsibilities and Regulation in the Digital Age at Parliament this morning.

Centre right blogger David Farrar has welcomed the report as a "welcome dose of common sense and respect for a free media, which avoids the excesses recommended in the UK and Australia".

Whereas the reform process in the UK has been driven public outrage over the News Corp phone hacking scandal, Law Commission president Sir Grant Hammond says there was no such crisis of confidence here. Rather, the commission was looking to standardise the rules and accountability between different media.

The mooted single media regulatory authority would receive no government funding. Mr Farrar says for complete independence, that is a good thing.

And while membership would be voluntary, the trade-off would be that only broadcasters, pubishers, websites and bloggers who joined would enjoy the full special legal status and protections afforded to media. In return, they would have to accept the responsibility of being governed by the regulator's standards.

Today, there are three media regulatory bodies: the government regulated Broadcasting Standards Authority, and the self-regulating Press Council and Advertising Standards Authority. There is now the opportunity for the media to move to a single, self-regulatory standards body, Mr Farrar says.

Tick from InternetNZ
InternetNZ policy lead Susan Chalmers says it is pleasing the commission has recognised that regulation across media should be principles-based and technology-neutral.

The line between old media and new media has blurred almost beyond recognition, InternetNZ says. Traditional media and ‘new’ media can and do co-exist. The commission has recognised that reality.

InternetNZ supports the independence of the proposed new body and the commission’s recommendation that a review of the entertainment sector is also undertaken.

Justice Minister Judith Collins will assess the report, then report back to Parliament later this year.

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