6A Factual and Current Affairs Programming : Best Practice
- Under the process of ‘disclosure', journalists' notes, emails, letters, all correspondence etc. are ‘disclosable' in legal proceedings i.e. copies may be provided to the other party, so think carefully about how they are written. Rushes are also ‘disclosable' so be careful about presenter/reporter comments before and after filmed sequences, which could be misinterpreted.
- Documents written for the dominant purpose of receiving legal advice should be headed "Privileged", as they will be subject to legal professional privilege. This means they are exempt from disclosure i.e. the other party to the litigation will not be provided with a copy.
- Journalists, when working on sensitive or legally contentious programmes, should carry documentation identifying them at all times unless it would inappropriate or dangerous to do so.
Travelling Abroad
- Filming abroad may give rise to special legal and health and safety issues, especially if it involves undercover filming. All such filming must be approved by the commissioning editor and programme lawyer in advance. In addition, if filming for Channel 4 is to take place in a potentially ‘hostile' country or environment, programme-makers must read and comply with the Channel 4's Hostile Environment Protocol at Appendix 7D .