Harsh British laws have seen Muslims branded as "terrorists", arrested and imprisoned without charge. The National Union of Journalists has armed reporters with guidelines to prevent them being used by police and the security services as a propaganda tool to whip up Islamaphobia.
The NUJ give this scenario which has been played out all too frequently around the country: I’m a reporter for a paper, website or broadcasting station. Police have raided various premises and arrested a number of men on suspicion of terrorist activity in my area. They hold a media briefing but give little information, arguing that national security is at stake.
What questions should I ask, and what should I report?
This is a story that has come up, amid a blaze of police publicity, many times. The NUJ Ethics Council has been discussing how to handle it. Here are the commonsense guideline.
When reporting official claims (by police, government or security services) about terror suspects or terrorist threats
■ Request evidence for the claims and report any failure to provide meaningful information.
■ Ask why the ordinary criminal law does not suffice to counter threats of violent activities.
When reporting official claims about "anti-terror" legislation and its role in protecting society
■ Be careful not to present claims as fact; qualify them as alleged or suspected. Otherwise you may be complicit in inciting racial and religious hatred, or in smearing specific individuals if the claims are false.
■ Remind readers that "anti-terror" laws authorise police action against non-violent activities, so that individuals may be suspected for their religious practices or beliefs, for the people they associate with, the organisations they belong to or the websites they visit.
■ Remember that only 20 per cent of those arrested under terrorism laws are charged with a terrorism-related
offence, that only five per cent are convicted – and again that the offences include a broad range of non-violent activities, for instance organising or taking part in legitimate public protests.
■ Avoid implying that terror suspects are terrorists, or that a ‘terrorist conviction’ involves planning or taking part in violent activities.
When presented with an "expert" on terrorism or related subjects
■ Ask about the expert’s qualifications and why their opinion should be given particular weight.
■ Check how the expert’s work is funded.
■ Try to ensure a political balance with different expert views.
These guidelines are based on the NUJ's Code of Conduct.
Thomas L. Blair is a sociologist and political blogger on the Chronicleworld 'for creative renewal in Black Britain and Afro-Europe'. His work is honoured in the British Library's archive of "social, historic and culturally significant web-based material from the UK domain". He won top prize in the blogging competition on The-Latest.
Sumantra Maitra is a freelance journalist from Mumbai, India. He is a correspondent for All Sports magazine, and a foreign affairs blogger for the Washington Examiner. He has written articles for news website Merinews.com and other regional publications. Sumantra runs a blog at DailyWorldWatch.wordpress.com. He provided exclusive eyewitness reports for The-Latest on the Mumbai bombings of 2008.
Brian Usher is photography consultant for The-Latest.Com. He is a highly experienced editorial and commercial photographer whose work has been published throughout the world, appearing in many well known magazines and newspapers. Brian has featured in several books and has been a writer for the Royal Photographic Society magazine.
Heidi Kingstone has spent time in Afghanistan reporting for a number of publications. Her work has appeared in the Financial Times, The Spectator, The Sunday Times and other international journals. She has also reported from places like Iraq, Rwanda, Lebanon, Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Kenya. Heidi is The-Latest's Editor at large.
latest comments