Rejected petition Hold the UK media accountable for creating social panic due to speculation

We ask Parliament to publish strict guidelines to the media on how to avoid causing social panic through speculative reporting during times such as the outbreak of COVID-19.

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A surge of panic purchasing has been occuring across the country due to the outbreak of COVID-19. Many media outlets have placed great emphasis on speculation of medicinal shortages, empty supermarkets and widespread disruption to the normal supply of goods. We would like Parliament to set out guidelines to avoid this passive encouraging of panic and ensure the media are held to account for irresponsible reporting leading to said panic.

This petition was rejected

Why was this petition rejected?

It’s about something that the UK Government or Parliament is not directly responsible for.

Complaints about the press are the responsibility of the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO), not the Government or Parliament.

You can find out how to make a complaint to IPSO here:

https://www.ipso.co.uk/IPSO/makeacomplaint.html

We only reject petitions that don’t meet the petition standards.

Date submitted 7 March 2020
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