Research project
Engaging the public in regulating for ethical journalism
- Start date: 1 June 2021
- End date: 31 August 2022
- Funder: The project received funding from the University of Leeds’s ESRC Impact Acceleration Account, the University of Leeds’s School of Media and Communication, the University of Derby’s SURE Impact Accelerator Fund and Impress: The Independent Monitor of the Press.
- Primary investigator: Professor Julie Firmstone
- External co-investigators: Professor John Steel, University of Derby
Value
£25,500.
Partners and collaborators
Professor John Steel, University of Derby; Impress: The Independent Monitor of the Press
Description
From distrust to dialogue: making journalism accountable to its audience
Public trust in journalism has been eroded by concerns about accuracy, fairness, and accountability in the news media. Trust in news in the UK is in decline and is low in comparison to other European countries. While journalism exists to serve the public interest, debates about the ethics and standards that govern it have historically taken place behind closed doors – dominated by elite groups, with little public input.
Why does news regulation need public voices?
When the public's perspectives are excluded from discussions about journalistic standards and ethical frameworks, communities facing social, political, or economic challenges risk having their stories misrepresented or overlooked entirely. This not only perpetuates harmful stereotypes – deepening inequalities – it also leads some audiences to disconnect from the news. As a result, some people are less informed about civic issues, become “news avoiders”, and stop seeing journalism as holding power to account.
This weakens the media’s role as an agent of accountability and discourages people from engaging critically with the news they consume. In turn, opportunities for informed debate, problem-solving, and collective action reduce, and individuals are less likely to participate in democratic processes. In response, Professors Julie Firmstone and John Steel set out to address this power imbalance. Their work brought the public into the heart of the conversation, giving news audiences a meaningful role in shaping the ethical frameworks that shape UK journalism.
The ‘Engaging the public in regulating for ethical journalism’ project built upon a major AHRC-funded study led by Professor Steel, ‘Defining Freedom of the Press’, where he and Professor Firmstone worked with a team of inter-disciplinary researchers to examine how journalism is regulated across 13 countries. It revealed that countries that performed well in terms of press freedom have more media-literate publics. These findings laid the groundwork for a second phase of research, supported by a University of Leeds ESRC Impact Acceleration Account grant (and additional funding from the University of Derby and Impress), launched in June 2021 and led by Professor Firmstone. The new study asked: What do audiences think about journalism ethics and standards, and how can their voices help build a more trusted, accountable news ecosystem?
The mixed-methods research programme engaged over 3,000 people through a nationally representative survey and in-depth focus groups. These engagement activities aimed to capture audience perceptions of journalism, their understanding of regulation, and their expectations for change. The evidence culminated in the development of a practical toolkit for engaging news audiences in debates about ethics and standards, with the results now used by Impress and shared widely across the sector.
In the context of declining levels of trust and confidence in news, coupled with the problems of mis/disinformation, our research highlights the importance of including the voices of the wider public in discussions about how to enhance trust in journalism.
Impact
The research has had a societal impact on standards and ethics in journalism by developing tools to sustain meaningful engagement with audiences, generating solutions in collaboration with a press regulator (Impress), and impacting public knowledge.
The research had a measurable impact on public knowledge
- 64% of the 3044 survey participants said their understanding of journalism ethics had increased, and 61% said they were more interested in the topic.
- Focus group participants reported taking discussions further by researching press regulation online – sparking deeper individual learning and engagement.
Findings from both Firmstone and Steel’s projects contributed to the revision of Impress’s Standards Code to reflect public values more accurately, making press regulation more transparent, inclusive, and attuned to real-world harms. The research was used as an evidence base to inform the development and implementation of Impress’s strategy to centre public engagement and education as core missions. Ahead of the 2024 General Election, drawing on insights from the research, Impress launched a national media literacy campaign ‘#KnowTheNews’, which reached more than 1.2 million people across digital platforms. The campaign aimed to make the public more aware of news media literacy, press regulation, and the Impress Standards Code.
Evidence from the project has been included in:
- The BBC’s 2024 review of its Editorial Guidelines
- A House of Lords report on Media Literacy 2024
- A government review of Digital Inclusion 2024.
- An Ofcom report into the Future of Public Service Broadcasting 2025
Professor Firmstone contributes expertise from the project as a member of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Political and Media Literacy and as a member of the Public Interest News Foundation’s Research Advisory Group.
Findings from the feature in teaching resources for journalism educators such as the Guardian Foundation’s Media Literacy Ambassador programme.
The impact of the research was recognised at the University of Leeds’ Research Impact and Engagement Awards 2024, where the project won a prize for its ‘Mature Societal Impact.’
Publications and outputs
A report based on the project’s survey can be found here.
A second report based on the project focus groups can be found here.
The Leeds Societal Futures Institute (formerly the Leeds Social Science Institute) prepared a case study on this project, and this can be accessed here.
Download the Ofcom report, The Future of Public Service Media.
Download the House of Lords Media Literacy Report.
Click here to see an animation about the project.