Shaping the Future COMMISSION ON MULTI-MEDIA WORKING December 2007 NUJ COMMISSION ON MULTI-MEDIA WORKING 2007 CONTENTS 1: Background to the commission 4 2: Summary and recommendations 5 3: The Union and Union Policy 8 4: Analysis of the evidence 10 (i) Union agreements 10 (ii) Pay 12 (iii) Working Practices 14 (iv) Staffing and Jobs 16 (v) Training 18 (vi) Health and Safety 20 (vii) Freelances 22 (viii) User Generated Content 24 5. Professional Standards 27 6: The Future 32 APPENDICES 1. Questionnaire and Results 36 2. NUJ Agreement at Guardian/Observer 39 3. The Irish Times and Ireland.Com 42 4. NUJ Integration Claim at The Liverpool Post and Echo 45 5. The Agreement at The Drogheda Independent 47 6. Oxford Mail and Times NUJ Chapel Monitoring Form 49 7. Reed Business Information Editorial Guidelines on Web Transition 50 8. Health and Safety: The BBC Risk Assessment Form 53 9. NUJ Code of Practice on ‘Witness Contributors’ 55 2 NUJ Commission on multi-media working 2007 FOREWORD Jeremy Dear, NUJ General Secretary The NUJ launched its Journalism Matters the tide. But we do seek to shape the future, campaign in 2005 to protect standards at a to serve not the media corporations but the time when publishers were hacking away at readers and viewers. their spending on journalism to make way The real threat to quality comes not from for investment in the “new” digital media. At technology, not from new media, not even meetings around Britain and Ireland members from the “citizen journalism”, but from those proclaimed that they could not do their jobs who treat information and news as nothing properly as editors pressed them to deliver on more than a commodity, and journalists as the multi-platforms without adequate staffing, pay servants of corporate interests, not the public. or training. This report brings together the experience Everyone agreed that technology was not of journalists across all media and sectors of the to blame. The fault lay with its appropriation industry. It shows developments happening by shortsighted media employers. Instead of at different speeds, but a common view shines seizing the opportunity to enhance journalistic through: that to take best advantage of the content, most seized the potential to reduce opportunities, companies need to ensure costs and boost profits, with the erosion of they are adequately staffed, that staff are quality journalism an acceptable price to pay. properly trained, and that the fundamentals Now the media pages are crammed with of journalism are not sacrificed in the pursuit starry-eyed commentators who talk not just of of technology for its own sake, or for a quick “new” media but of a “new” journalism, with the financial return. open access of the internet effectively allowing There will be those who say of this anybody to be a journalist. Yes the internet is report that the NUJ is too slow to embrace a brilliant medium for everyone, but not, the technological changes, and there will be those NUJ says, at the expense of decent professional who will say we are too keen on them. Both are journalism. wrong. We are unashamedly in favour of new This report, and the events that happened media where it enhances good journalism, during its writing – most notably the and unashamedly opposed to moves which multimedia agreement signed at The undermine it. Guardian/Observer in London – demonstrate unequivocally that journalists don’t reject technological change or seek to hold back NUJ Commission on multi-media working 2007 3 SECTION 1 BACKGROUND TO THE COMMISSION The Commission on Multi-Media Working was established The following officials serviced the work of the at the union’s 2007 Annual Delegate Meeting as a result of Commission: Tim Gopsill, Lawrence Shaw and Jeremy Dear the following motion: This ADM recognises the challenges that the union will METHODOLOGY have to meet as working practices throughout the industry Evidence was gathered between 15 June and 30 July are affected by the rapid implementation of multi-media 2007 from a representative cross-section of media – both technology. ADM declares that there is an urgent need for the geographically (UK and Ireland) and by media sectors. union to develop strategies to meet these challenges. An online questionnaire (p xx) was circulated to all Chapels. ADM congratulates NUJ chapels, especially those in national Detailed interviews were held at 15 workplaces. newspapers that have responded to them with determined Interviews were conducted variously with union action to achieve the best possible earnings and conditions for representatives, with senior staff responsible for new media our members. and/or with editorial managers. ADM thanks NEC and the officials concerned for producing its Written and/or verbal submissions were made by the informative preliminary report in a relatively short time. NUJ’s Freelance Industrial Council, Broadcasting Industrial ADM resolves to establish at this conference an ADM Council, New Media Industrial Council and Ethics Council. Commission on Multi-Media Working. It shall consist of: Further evidence in the form of articles, academic four members elected at this ADM (which shall not include reports and individual contributions from NUJ members NEC members), two from the NEC and one from the IEC. was considered. ADM believes that those put forward for election to the commission should be members either with experience SCHEDULE OF EVIDENCE Information was received, either as completed of multimedia working or from offices where it is being questionnaires and/or from direct interviews, from implemented. representatives of the following workplaces/titles: The commission will conduct an intensive study into all union- Press Association, Archant (Norfolk), icWales, Yorkshire related aspects of multi-media working. It will invite evidence Post, Southern Daily Echo, PA Digital, Bucks Free Press, or information from all industrial and other national Councils, Harcourt Education, EMAP, CMPi, BBC News Interactive, chapels and branches, and individual members. It may BBC Scotland, Longford Leader, Champion Newspapers, conduct meetings around Britain and Ireland. Newyddion Ar-lein, TSL Education, BBC Radio Cumbria, The Commission shall consider the areas of training, health Yorkshire Evening Post, Milton Keynes Citizen, Rochdale and safety AND the use of freelances and of ‘user-generated Observer, Coventry Telegraph, Sheffield Star, BBC News content’ as well as the wages and conditions of members. It Online, The Guardian, Which? Magazine, China Dialogue, shall produce a report within four months. This report shall Evening Gazette (Middlesbrough), Manchester Evening include a model agreement on multi-media working for News, Channel 4 News, Meath Chronicle, Greenock chapels as well as other recommendations for union policies Telegraph, Leinster Leader, The Press (York), Reed Business and strategies. Information, Western Mail and Echo, Newsquest Blackburn/ Lancashire Telegraph, Daily/Sunday Telegraph/Telegraph MEMBERS OF THE COMMISSION Online, Scotsman Publications, Reed Business Information, Four members elected to the Commission by delegates University of Central Lancashire, Irish Times, ITV Wales, at the ADM: Paula Dear, Gary Herman, Jemima Kiss and Oxford Mail, Hereford Times. Helene Mulholland, Two members elected by the National Executive A breakdown of the results is at Appendix 1. Council: Donnacha DeLong and John Barsby One member elected by the Irish Executive Council: Eanna O Caollai 4 NUJ Commission on multi-media working 2007 SECTION 2 BACKGROUND TO THE COMMISSION EXECUTIVE SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS Over the last couple of years journalists have found The speed of change at the BBC is being dictated by themselves at the sharp end of the race between media the need to make savage cuts, and the unions are rightly owners to become multi-media outlets. But how is this concerned about the effect this combination of plans will affecting the day-to-day lives of members? have on workloads and quality, not to mention the explicit This commission has gathered evidence of a broad threat of compulsory redundancies from management. range of experiences in different organisations. A number The BBC is in many ways ahead of the game in terms of of specific recommendations have been drawn up, but one negotiated agreements on multi-media working, but the obvious conclusion to have emerged from this study was media world will watch with interest as the BBC and the that we, as a profession, are working at a time of particularly unions navigate their way through the next few months rapid change that still has a long way to go. and years. It should be acknowledged that some early signs Across all media the nature and pace of developments suggest the change is bringing positive opportunities and in the way content is being produced and consumed may in some cases creating, rather than dispensing with, jobs. be all at once exhilarating, terrifying, baffling, inspiring and As it has done so throughout its history, the NUJ is damaging, but our principles as a union remain the same. embracing the new world whilst remaining determined The issues that concern us are how these changes to influence it. Members do not wish to resist change but alter our working conditions, our health and safety, and rather to have a say in how it is implemented. They want the quality of our output. If we are to adopt new skills we change to be made by agreement, with the acceptance should demand the tools and training we need, and the of the principle of “voluntarism” through which journalists pay that reflects the work. who have reasonable objections will not be forced to take The key issues that concern us are: firstly, what should on new work. They want to expose the negative impacts we do to respond the challenge facing us, and secondly, where they exist and have the power to change them.