Recent
Insights from three generations of mothers
The report seeks to answer some specific questions about the changing face of motherhood and determine the extent to which modern ‘solutions’ to motherhood are more or less beneficial than the solutions of the past. more
Report of an independent assessment
Two years ago, in the Children's Plan, the DCSF committed itself to commission an independent assessment of the impact of the commercial world on children's wellbeing. That assessment, led by Professor David Buckingham, is now complete. As part of the process SIRC was commissioned to undertake two major reviews: Children and Family Life: Socio-Demographic Changes and The Ecology of Family Life. more
Psychological impact & the lessons of recession
There can be very few people in Britain who are unaware that we have been living in times of recession…It is clear that people — even those unaffected directly — are worried, especially about their future financial security. But are there some positive lessons to be learnt? more
The role and citizen impact of Public Service Broadcasting
As a complement to the extensive work contributed by other players on the rapid advances in technology and consumer behaviour, the work is designed to review and present the available data on broader social trends which may impact on PSB in the future…more
Naming and Praising Awards – April 2002
SIRC Naming and Praising Awards go to James Meikle at the Guardian and David Derbyshire at the Telegraph for their calm, responsible coverage of the recent 'Parkinson's breakthrough' story. Meikle managed to get the main caveat into the very first sentence of his story, while Derbyshire devoted most of the third and fourth sentences to important ifs and buts. In neither case did this responsible approach detract from the interest or impact of the news, but Parkinson's sufferers and their relatives reading Meikle's and Derbyshire's accounts will not have false hopes cruelly raised by expectations of a 'miracle cure'.
These journalists prove that the advice in the SIRC/RS/RI Guidelines – to mention any caveats in the first few lines of any report on a potential health benefit or risk – can be followed without detriment to the news value of the story.
It is perhaps no accident that these stories were written by their papers' health and science correspondents, while the Independent relied on a PA News text, which failed to mention any caveats until the very last lines, and the Sun gave us the predictably irresponsible "Docs hail miracle cure" headline, again leaving a brief mention of the fact that it will be years before any treatment is available to the very end of the report.
22 April 2002
