The Government has published its action plan to better protect journalists from threats of violence and intimidation, which includes every UK police force being given access to a designated journalist safety liaison officer.
Abuse aimed at UK journalists going about their work has included them being punched, threatened with knives, forcibly detained and subjected to rape and death threats, the Government said.
In the past year two men have been jailed for threatening regional journalist Amy Fenton on Facebook while two female journalists in Belfast, Patricia Devlin and Allison Morris, have been the subject of threats both online and in graffiti.
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Government unveils action plan to clamp down on abuse aimed at journalists
One example of abuse aimed at Nottinghamshire Live reporters includes suggesting a writer should be killed
An aerial view of Nottingham city centre. (Image: Nottingham Post)
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COWARDLY attacks and abuse directed at reporters cannot continue, the Prime Minister has said. The government has published the UK’s first national action plan to protect journalists from abuse and harassment. It follows reports to the government from journalists who have suffered abuse and attacks while going about their work, including being punched, threatened with knives, forcibly detained and subjected to rape and death threats. A survey of members of the National Union of Journalists in November also found more than half of respondents had experienced online abuse while nearly a quarter had been physically assaulted or attacked. The plan will increase awareness of the safety challenges faced by journalists operating in the UK and introduce measures to tackle them in a joint effort by law enforcement, broadcasters, publishers, industry bodies, unions and the government.