The Lobby and Parliamentary

ReportagePolitical Reporting (JN513)

Lecture Outline• 1. Parliamentary Reporting• 2. The Lobby

Parliamentary Reporting

• Parliament historically hostile to the presence of journalists. A resolution in 1738 declared that the reporting of parliament was a breach of parliamentary privilege. Parliament acknowledged the presence of newspaper reporters in 1803 and in 1828 some floor space was set aside for reporters.

• It was only in 1884 that the current Lobby system was established.

Parliamentary Reporting

• Parliamentary reportage has declined but reportage of politics remains prominent:

• “Politics has always been a core element in the agenda of liberal journalism and ….far from being abandoned on the altar of crass commercialism coverage of politics has increased” (McNair 200, p. 42).

Parliamentary Reporting

• Parliamentary reporting prestigious round – working close to powerful individuals.

• Physical conditions of reportage – close proximity to sources – produces hot-house atmosphere, active rumour mill, more autonomous identity disconnected from editors and newsrooms.

• Politicians and journalists share complex and fragile symbiotic relationship.

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTvRRRDpQts

Parliamentary Reporting

• Criticism gallery journalists are too insular, elitist and disconnected from concerns of the general public. Yet some gallery journalists dismiss this: “My job is to report on what happens along a couple of corridors in this building” Tom Burton.

• Another criticism is that the press gallery has a‘herd mentality’ – singular framework for understanding political activity. Alternatively, strong competition for exclusive stories

Parliamentary Reporting

• Less broadsheet reportage of the details of parliamentary debates;

• Less coverage of parliamentary activities generally, including committee activities and reports; and

• A change in the nature of parliamentary coverage – gossip rather than the substance of argument (Negrine).

Parliamentary Reporting

• Franklin identifies four changes in parliamentary reporting:o Items discussing personal scandal or

allegations of misconduct now enjoy greater prominence;

o growing journalistic preoccupation with government and senior politicians to neglect of back benches and minor parties;

o growing trend for journalists to be highly critical in their appraisals of events in parliament; and

o newspaper reports have offered parliamentarians few opportunities to articulate their views directly through quotations.

Parliamentary Reporting

• In response he notes that journalists offer five possible explanations for these changes:o the journalist critics – More competitive media market. Also accelerated

by the advent of new technologies which no longer requires journalists to be present in the chamber and reduces their contact with the House and its procedures.

o the media pluralists - Media pluralists argue the decline in gallery reporting in newspapers is a consequence of the burgeoning of political reporting in other media. Politicians prefer to give speeches to television – alternative chamber.

o the MP publicity seekers - Publicity-crazed MPs organize press conferences usually in the morning which can preempt events in the chamber. Publicity conscious MPs exploit soundbites.

o parliamentarians in decline - quality of debate has decline, oratory skills lost, governments more adept at managing media, less unpredictable

o bored readers.

Parliamentary Reporting

• Davis’s study (2007) found that 59% of polled MPS said news stories were most important source of information and a quarter said news coverage drove political agenda in Parliament that day.

• MPs focused on quality print media but just under half of polled MPs said political coverage was overly trivial and dominated by personalities.

• Just over 80% of polled MPs had formal media training and/or background in journalism or PR.

• Anticipation of news coverage had shaping effect on overall policy agenda.

• Commentary from Lobby correspondents played a formative role in directing opinion among both journalists and politicians.

• Constant (formal and social) interaction with journalists (particularly local journalists) to maintain good relations.

The Lobby• Traditional distinction between press gallery

journalists who had access to the press gallery and reported on proceedings and Lobby journalists who have more and closer access and seek more exclusive stories.

• http://www.pressgallery.org.uk • James LandaleChairman of the Parliamentary

Press Gallery 2014• Members of the Lobby, mainly from mainstream

print and broadcast outlets (and mainly male):• http://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2013/j

an/09/david-cameron-female-political-journalists-question

The Lobby• Definitions of the Lobby:• Members’ Lobby just outside the House of

Commons;• The group of journalists – names held by the

Serjeant at Arms;• The twice-daily meetings with the PM’s press

secretary.• We are not talking about the process of

‘lobbying’: the activities of consultants hired by business and interest groups to influence government decisions.

The Lobby• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UyRYnOEWCc

w• Lobby membership provided great access to

politicians.• Lobby information was not attributable – “sources

close to the PM”.• MP would approach the journalist.• Nobody interrupted lobby conversation.

The Lobby• Argument that Lobby power dependent upon

small government majorities - height of Lobby power was during Callaghan government.

• Changing lobby power also linked to media technology: television cameras only allowed in Parliament 1989; and now Internet and social media make interpersonal contact less important.

• Subsequent larger majorities and greater party discipline and more sophisticated media management helped temper the power of the Lobby.

The Lobby• During the 1980s the Independent, the Guardian

and the Scotsman boycotted the lobby briefings.• The new Labour government in 1997 announced

that the twice-daily press briefing would be on the record.

• Reputation of Lobby was damaged when it missed the expenses scandal.

• Greater emphasis now on story productivity and less time for reportage (gathering and verifying stories).

The Lobby• Description of briefings:• Announcements of government press notices and forthcoming

press conferences.• Details of parliamentary matters: ministerial statements, written

answers, private notice questions.• PM’s schedule for the day.• Questions then sought.• (Barnett & Gaber 2001, pp. 42-43).• Briefings now less important: information made available outside

official briefings, important questions and answers in huddle afterwards, and more political news flagged outside of briefings.

• https://www.gov.uk/government/announcements?keywords=&announcement_type_option=all&topics%5B%5D=all&departments%5B%5D=prime-ministers-office-10-downing-street&world_locations%5B%5D=all&from_date=&to_date=

• http://www.prweek.com/article/1149442/press-seeks-revised-no-10-briefings-steve-field-exit

The Lobby• While modern lobby reportage is now dominated

by the Internet and social media, the exclusive nature of the Lobby and the interpersonal contact continue to provide means to access and assess the rumours, gossip and background information that is still integral to parliamentary reportage.

References• Barnett, S, & Gaber. I 2001, Westminster Tales: The 21st Century Crisis in

British• Political Journalism. London: Continuum.• Davis, A 2007, ‘Mediated Politics: the mediation of parliamentary politics’,

in: The Mediation of Power: A Critical Introduction, Routledge, Oxford.• Franklin B 1997, ‘From the gallery to the gutter: Changing newspaper

reporting of parliament’, in: Newszak & News Media, Arnold, London. • Gaber, I 2009, The slow death of the Westminster Lobby: Collateral

damage from the MPs’ expenses scandal’, British Politics, vol. 4, no. 4, pp. 478-497.

• McNair, B. 2000, “Policy, process, performance and sleaze: An evaluation of the political news agenda.” Journalism and Democracy. London: Routledge.

• Negrine, R 1996, ‘Reporting Parliament, Reporting Politics’, in: The Communication of Politics, Sage, London.