Scottish journalist and broadcaster Charles Fletcher took over from
Sir Louis Blom-Cooper as chairman of The MediaWise Trust at its AGM on
Monday.
The independent media ethics charity, set up in 1993, is supported by UK journalists, media lawyers and politicians.
Fletcher
paid tribute to the work the trust has done over the past 12 years and
championed the Exiled Journalists Network (EJN) which the charity
launched last week.
He said: “The EJN is a visionary extension of
the MediaWise ethic, and working with these journalists, from all
around the world, is humbling and at the same time, incredibly
energising.
“The core strategy of MediaWise – for better journalism – is something that everyone in the industry must value and support.”
Fletcher
said he was aiming to build on relationships that MediaWise had
established with Ofcom and the Press Complaints Commission. “We
influenced the new Ofcom code, and the work of the PCC, which we have
often criticised for being weak.
“During my first week in office
I shall be meeting with both regulators to assure them that we shall
continue to build on past good relationships in our efforts to assist
those with genuine complaints about print and broadcast journalism.
“Like all good friends, we’ll have the courage to tell them when we believe they are wrong.”
Fletcher
also said the MediaWise trust was in need of sustained fundraising in
order to keep it running. “Despite MediaWise’s considerable
achievements over the years, there is one area that MediaWise has yet
to tackle effectively: continuing funding.”
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