ABSTRACT
Accuracy is also ‘definitely an issue’ for any aspiring broadcast journalist. It is the number one issue. Readers of newspapers, listeners to radio and viewers of television all expect the news to be trustworthy. They expect it to be true. Opinion surveys, such as those conducted on behalf of Eurobarometer or the World Economic Forum, tend to show that broadcast news enjoys a higher level of trust and credibility than the printed press. This seems to be because most newspapers have a recognised position in the political spectrum, or a known stance on important issues. The tradition of broadcasting in Britain, stretching back more than eighty years, is one of impartiality. It is enshrined in the BBC charter, and in the laws and codes of practice that regulate commercial broadcasting.
