Legal Constraints

1. Legal and Regulatory Constants in Radio News
Handling news stories involving minors
News stories regardingor involvingminors musthave their identity protected. The BBC guidelines statethat
they must ensure that physical and emotional welfareand the dignity of children and young people are
protected duringthe makingand broadcastof their content. These guidelines areset in placein order to keep
the person(s) under 18 years of age protected. Some news stories arebroadcasted depending on the time of
the day which is appropriatefor the nature of the story. This is becauseusually duringthedaytime children of
a young age are most likely to watch/listen to the television or radio meaningstories which areinappropriate
are not suitableto be discussed duringthattime. This is where the watershed comes in handy as itallows
things to be aired which aren’t suitablefor young children duringa time when they areusually in bed.
Contempt of Court
Contempt of courtis the offence of being disobedientor disrespectful towards the court of lawand its office in
the form of behaviour that opposes or defies authority, justice,and dignity of the court. An example of this is
newspapers such as The Sun and The Mirror can be used when talkingaboutcontempt of court. Newspapers
such of these can get fines from court if they breach contempt laws by broadcastingcertain news stories.
Libel and Defamation
The lawof defamation is put into placeso that a person’s reputation and good name againstcommunications
that is falseand/or derogatory. The BBC Editorial Guidesay thatany livingindividual or company can sueas
longas they are reasonably identifiablefromwhat is said and thematerial is defamatory of them. This is when
somebody may be accused of something that they haven’t done and can damage them publically in regards of
reputation.