The Sun has responded to a letter sent to editor Rebekah Wade by social workers' weekly Community Care accusing it of "undermining" the profession in its coverage of the Baby P case.
Community Care has also started an e-petition on the Downing Street website calling on the Prime Minister to urge the Sun to stop attacking social workers.
The reply from Sun managing editor Graham Dudman states:
"Thank you for your letter to Rebekah Wade which has been passed to my office.
"I am sorry you believe The Sun’s campaign for justice for Baby P is irresponsible and biased.
"You are, of course, entitled to that view. Although The Sun plus the 1,500,000 people who signed our petition disagree with you.
"We are proud to have campaigned successfully to have those responsible held accountable, especially as they continue to refuse to apologise.
"I agree social work is a difficult job at the best of times but make no apologies for the way we highlighted the appalling catalogue of mistakes that led to Baby P’s death. "
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6 comments:
It's really important that we support quality journalism which, in this case, comes in the form of a serious and thoughtful campaign by Community Care - a serious and thoughtful publication. Not, needless to say, in the form of the Sun - which is not a serious or thoughtful publication in any sense.
The poor journalism in the Sun, explained patiently in Community Care's letter, and the paper's disdainful response shows just how little their Baby P reporting had to do with child protection. And how much it had to do with its tried-and-tested-and-tedious gunboat diplomacy tactic to try to force a cowering government into being seen to be 'acting'.
Community Care's analysis of the way the Sun responded differently to the police and social work in this case is instructive. To the outside observer, there were failings by both - both, it has to be said, are agents of the state. But, and this is the key point in the Sun's decision to support or oppose, one is recognisably a rightwing agent, the other recognisably leftwing.
Hi Jon.
Do you have a link to the reply, please?
The link is here:
http://www.communitycare.co.uk/Articles/2009/02/13/110717/social-workers-and-baby-p-the-suns-full-response-to-community-care.html
Thank you.
Thanks for your support Rich. You're right about the need to stand up for quality journalism and we think it's important to stand up for a profession that often ends up as a scapegoat in certain sections of the media.
Thanks for your comments.
Interesting debate on Today programme this morning when ex-News of the World editor Phil Hall asked why social workers weren't doing something about the 13-year-old Dad featured in The Sun.
It was pointed out that it was extremely rare for the tabloids to encourage intervention by social workers.
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