Countries: United Kingdom

United Kingdom – (E9) Participation

Different news organisations in the UK offer different avenues of participation for audiences. Many comments sections have been scaled back or removed due to difficulties in moderating abuse.

United Kingdom – (E8) Level of self-regulation

The UK print and online news media are subject to self-regulation. Broadcast regulation is managed by a statutory corporation that is not directly controlled by the state, though its guidelines are underpinned by statute.

United Kingdom – (E6) Content monitoring instruments

The UK has no public media monitor, though piecemeal monitoring is conducted by NGOs and academic units, some self-monitoring mechanisms are operated by broadcasters and there are some transparency obligations on regulated media that comprise informal monitoring instruments.

United Kingdom – (E4) Minority / Alternative media

The BBC devotes significant funding to minority-language news in Scotland and Wales, and the BBC Asian Network is also aimed at minority audiences. Commercial minority media covering many language groups and communities are licenced by Ofcom and several are available in print and online.

United Kingdom – (E2) Media ownership concentration regional level

The UK local press has become more concentrated over the past 20 years but a significant ‘long tail’ of smaller publishers still exists. Broadcast news, as at the national level, is dominated by the BBC and Sky News though the local radio and hyperlocal sector has a wide variety of providers.

United Kingdom – (E1) Media ownership concentration national level

Ownership concentration in the newspaper industry has increased in recent years, and commercial radio is dominated by a small number of companies. The BBC, while publicly-owned, is dominant in broadcasting overall, and broadcast news provision is almost entirely provided by the BBC, ITN and Sky News.