LO2: Legal and Ethical

 a) IPSO

IPSO (Independent Press Standards Organisation) regulate magazines and uphod the editors code of practice. This includes accuracy, 'invasion of privacy, intrusion in to grief or shock harassment.'

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b)    Obscene Publications Act

This is a law that prevents you from publishing anything that may have a negative influence on readers. This may include graphic images, nudity, anything considered discriminatory, alcohol and drug use.

My audience will predominantly be male, between the ages of 16 and 25 and middle class. Magazines such as Metal Hammer and KERRANG! use a lot of innapropritate language and reference violence and it is likely that my audience could be influence by this.

Metal Hammer issue

3 ways I shall adhere to this law:

1.  As my magazine is a music magazine there is no need for anything containting nudity
2.  Despite the genre being associated with drugs and alcohol I won't be mentioning either to avoid influencing readers.
3. The genre is also heavily associated with violence, the magazine itself is called 'The Pit' which is a reference to the mosh pit but in order to adhere to this law I won't be glorifying moshing as an activity as my target audience (16-25) is very impressionable. I certainly won't be including violent images (such as the one to the right) as it could again affect this impressionable audience.

c)    Libel law

 This law prevents you from publishing anything which is not true. This also means you cannot report anything that would be defamatory - would ruin the reputation of the person you are speaking about.

3 ways I shall adhere to this law:

1.  I will not be slating any of the people mentioned in my magazine.
2.  As my magazine is not a genuine publication and is only being made for educational purposes, a lot of my articles will be made up but I shall still avoid reporting on events that did not take place.
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d)    Copyright

Copyright is a type of intellectual property that is used to protect certains kinds of creative work. It is a legal right given to the creator of an original work and allows them rights to control the use and distribution of that work. Therefore, to use someone else's work you need the creator's permission, if you do not do this then you are comitting copyright infringement.

In order to have a piece of work protected by copyright in the UK it has to be original, meaning you have created it yourself, and tangible meaning it can't just be an idea it has to have been created and be an actual physical thing.

3 ways I shall adhere to this law:

1. Getting permission to use brands and logos.
2. Using images/ photographs that I have not taken myself.
3. Using fonts which have Creative Commons licenses or are free for use.

e)    Laws of contempt

 "It is a criminal offence to publish content that poses a risk to justice in proceedings. Prevents magazines from publishing anything that is too sensationalist about an ongoing criminal case."   

f)    Official Secrets Act