Record Number of PCC Complaints In 2001

More than half of a record number of complaints recieved by the Press Complaints Commission (PCC) during 2001 were against national daily and Sunday newspapers, while only 4% were against magazines, according to the organisation’s Annual Review.

The PCC document indicates that 3,033 complaints were received over the course of the year. The majority were from ordinary people, and a large proportion were with regard to accuracy or right to reply.

Acting chairman Professor Robert Pinker commented: “The task of the PCC in the years ahead is to show that we continue to be up to the difficult challenge of balancing the protection of individual privacy withthe public’s right to know.”

Figures in the review show that 56% of complaints were against national daily or Sunday papers, 26% against regional titles in England and Wales, 7% against Scottish papers, 7% against Northern Irish or other papers and just 4% against magazines. 57.8% of complaints referred to issues of accuracy, while 27.8% complained of invasion into personal lives.

Despite the high profile of cases involving celebrities, only 3% of complaints received by the PCC were from people in the national public eye, and only 7% from organisations and public bodies. The remaining 90% came from ordinary people temporarily caught up in the spotlight of press coverage.

During 2001, the PCC issued full adjudications on 41 cases. It upheld 19 and rejected 22.

PCC: 020 7353 1248 www.pcc.org.uk

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