ITC Regulation
ITC powers, unlike the Broadcasting Standards Commission (BSC), are not limited to commenting on complaints. As regulator of commercial television, the ITC has powers to require effective compliance procedures, forbid repeats, impose financial penalties and shorten or revoke a licence for breaches of ITC codes and licence conditions. The ITC intervenes on its own initiative and in reaction to viewers’ complaints if licence conditions or codes have been breached. Viewers can telephone, email or write to the Viewer Relations Unit.
Licensees must adopt adequate procedures for dealing with complaints, which must include informing members of the public that they have a right to complain to the ITC. Records of complaints must be kept for two years and made available to the ITC on request. The ITC has set a threshold for Channel 3 licensees, Channel 4 and Channel 5 in terms of the number of complaints received on any single programme. When reached, the licensee must provide a report to the ITC on the subject of the complaints and how they have been handled. The threshold is set according to the size of the population served by the licensee.
Viewer Relations Unit
The ‘Viewer Relations Unit’ was established in May 2001. The Unit is now the first point of contact for all complaints, comments and enquiries; and can be contacted by telephone: 0845 6013608; email: viewer.relations@itc.org.uk; or by writing to: Viewer Relations Unit, ITC, 33 Foley Street, London W1W 7TL; the aim is to provide our viewers with a first-class service. The Unit deals with general complaints and pass those that raise Code issues to the relevant specialist Groups to process. The Unit also provides the ITC with analysis of viewers’ complaints and comments, which informs the ITC’s licensing and regulatory decisions and assists with the drawing up of its Codes.
ITC Procedures
Programmes and sponsorship. All complaints are logged, acknowledged and assessed by the Viewer Relations Unit. If appropriate, a programme will be viewed by one or more staff to see if there are possible breaches of the programme code. After investigation by staff and, if necessary, taking a view from the ITC licensee responsible for the programme, every complainant receives a personal reply. If a complaint is upheld the licensee may have to make changes that will prevent repetition of the breach. For more serious or persistent breaches of the Programme Code the ITC can tell the company to broadcast an apology or correction, impose a fine, shorten the term of a licence or, in extreme cases, revoke it altogether.
Advertising. Television companies are themselves responsible in the first instance for the approval of advertising and for the majority of the principal broadcasters. This is undertaken by a central body called the Broadcast Advertising Clearance Centre (BACC) who apply, on behalf of their client companies, the ITC advertising code. Broadcasters are expected to respond to complaints addressed directly to them but also to advise that complainants may refer their point to the ITC if not satisfied with the response.
All complaints are logged, acknowledged and assessed by the Viewer Relations Unit. All complainants receive a reasoned explanation of the decision reached. Priority is given to cases where it is alleged that potential harm may arise from the advertisements (e.g., provoking dangerous copycat behaviour or triggering physiological reactions such as epileptic fits), and to cases where the advertising is alleged to be misleading. Unacceptable advertisements must be withdrawn. The ITC is, in addition to its role under the Broadcasting Acts, an administrative authority for the purposes of the Control of Misleading Advertisements Regulations 1988.
Sanctions. Examples of programme sanctions include the revoking of Med TV’s licence (ITC news release 28/99), financial penalties of £2m imposed on Central Television for including faked evidence in a documentary, The Connection (ITC news release 118/98) and of £½m imposed on Granada Television as a result of undue prominence and sponsorship code breaches in This Morning (ITC news release 82/94). Financial penalties totalling £60k were imposed on MTV Europe for three breaches of the programme and advertising codes (ITC news release 69/95). Recent fines include £100,000 on LWT for product placement (ITC news release 41/01), £20,000 and £40,000 on You TV for repeated failures to ensure editorial integrity (ITC news release 20/04), and £10,000 each on Kanal 5 for sexually explicit images before the watershed (ITC news releases 73/02 and 33/03), B4U for including violence in films before the watershed (ITC news release 74/02). Sanctions are less frequent in relation to advertising but there have been recent fines on teleshopping channels: Auctionworld was fined £10,000 for unacceptable delivery performance (ITC news release 07/03) and Shop America £60,000 for repeatedly broadcasting misleading advertisements (ITC news release 36/03).
Number of Complaints
Advertising. In 2002, the ITC received 7,830 complaints. The number of upheld complaints was 135. It received 2,213 complaints about misleading advertising, 89 of which were upheld, 3,979 complaints about offensive advertising, 20 of which were upheld, 1178 complaints about the possible effects of harm, 14 of which were upheld and 460 complaints on a variety of other issues, 12 of which were upheld.
Programmes. In 2002 the ITC received 4,054 complaints about ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5, cable, satellite and Teletext services. 173 of these complaints were to do with issues of accuracy, 245 with impartiality, and 376 were with other unfairness. There were 120 complaints about racial offence, 140 for religious offence and 1,496 complaints about general taste and decency issues. The ITC received 77 complaints about violence, 295 about language and 223 about sexual portrayal. Remaining complaints related to programme scheduling and a range of miscellaneous issues. Complaints were upheld wholly or in part about 51 individual programmes.
Publications
The ITC gives a public account of its decisions on complaints in the fortnightly bulletins for programmes and advertising. The reports record the ITC’s conclusions on programmes and advertisements which raised significant regulatory issues and/or which attracted a significant number of complaints. The Programmes complaints and findings reports provide statistics on complaints in 12 categories. The Television advertising complaints reports comment on complaints of substance and includes a summary of other complaints and updated statistics on complaints classified as misleading, offensive, harmful and miscellaneous. Both reports are available (free) from the ITC’s Viewer Relations Unit and on the ITC website (www.itc.org.uk).
Role of the BSC
The Broadcasting Standards Commission (BSC) deals with complaints about unjust or unfair treatment in a programme or about unwarranted infringement of privacy. It also considers complaints about the portrayal of violence and sexual conduct, and standards of taste and decency in television and radio programmes and advertisements, including broadcasts by the BBC. If upheld, the BSC can require a summary of the complaint and of its findings to be broadcast or to be published in writing.
Publicity
The ITC uses airtime on ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5, and a range of cable and satellite channels to promote its regulatory functions. Weekly advertisements in TV Times and Radio Times Feedback column give viewers information on how to contact the ITC.
Further References
ITC Publications
ITC Library bibliography: Audience research
Programme complaints and findings report. Fortnightly
Television advertising complaints report. Fortnightly
Viewer Relations Unit
Independent Television Commission
33 Foley Street
London W1W 7TL
Tel 08456 013 608
Viewer.relations@itc.org.uk
April 2003
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