Twitter pressure on Moir column forces PCC action

by Jennifer Whitehead, revolutionmagazine.com 19-Oct-09, 13:16

LONDON - The Press Complaints Commission is to break with its own procedures and investigate Jan Moir's column in the Daily Mail about the death of Stephen Gately, in part because of pressure from Twitter users.

Since the article appeared on Friday, the PCC website crashed under the weight of more than 21,000 complaints - more than it has ever received for any story in its history.

The PCC acknowledged that many complaints were made after discussion on Twitter, where thousands of users spread links to the column online as well as to the PCC's site - often advising each other which sections of the Press Code the piece allegedly violated.

Moir's column was headlined on the Daily Mail site: ‘Why there was nothing natural about Stephen Gately’s death'. She asserted that 'healthy and fit 33-year-old men do not just climb into their pyjamas and go to sleep on the sofa, never to wake up again' and that the cause of Gately’s death 'is not, by any yardstick, a natural one'. An autopsy found that he had died from natural causes. The online headline was later changed to the one used in the newspaper: ‘A strange, lonely and troubling death’.

The PCC usually only investigates complaints made by people directly affected by a story. In the case of Moir's column, however, it has said that even if no one directly affected wishes to make a complaint, it will still ask the Daily Mail for its response to reaction from the public. After that it will consider whether there are any issues under the Code to pursue.

The powers of the PCC are limited to censuring those found in breach of the code. The controversy around the Daily Mail's column prompted advertisers, including Marks & Spencer, to ask that their ads not appear alongside the piece online.

In a release, the PCC said: 'The PCC generally requires the involvement of directly-affected parties in its investigations, and it has pro-actively been in touch with representatives of Boyzone - who are in contact with Stephen Gately's family - since shortly after his death. Any complaint from the affected parties will naturally be given precedence by the Commission, in line with its normal procedures.'

Last week, pressure from Twitter users led to the lawyers for Trafigura backing down on a gag order placed on The Guardian banning them from naming the company.

Paul Dacre, editor of the Daily Mail, is currently the chair of the committee which draws up the PCC’s editorial standards code of practice.

Comments

Simon Heath - 20/10/2009

Another example of how news and interaction with it is changing. It also shows how far the adoption of social media has come in the UK. The influence it now has on organisations and individuals is clear. Just ask Jan.

I was really interested in the comments made elsewhere about 'orchestration'. Moir herself tried to dismiss it by saying it was "heavily orchestrated". But actually that was the point of it and why it was so successful.

It didn't start off orchestrated, it grew naturally and by its own volition, an expression of outrage and disgust. But it did become 'orchestrated' to an extent once clear calls to action were established ("sign this letter to send to the PCC", ask the brands to remove their ads). There were clear 'influencers' here, driving engagement and action. In a marketing context, we might also call these people brand advocates.

But this isn't just about news, this also provides insight into how any campaign (issue-based, marketing, PR etc) can evolve in social media environments. Marketing campaigns may not necessarily be SO fast to develop but, within specific target audience groups, there can be a similar effect if the activity is planned effectively. So lessons for marketing can be learned from this example too.

I wrote more about the whole affair from a social media perspective in my blog yesterday. You can find it here.