Re: Interesting article on the amateur photographer hysteria

This whole issue is something that has been brewing for a long time 
now. About 8 years ago, Stafford****re Police appointed a new head 
press-officer by the name of Margaret Kirk. She visited several 
regional daily newspapers in the Stafford****re area - one of which was 
mine.

Our editor called me in for a chat with her, to tell her of some of the 
problems I had had over the years. I'd had many - mainly at RTAs being 
told that I cannot take a photo of it etc, when there is no law at all 
stopping me.

We had a long chat and I suggested to her that I get hold the US 
National Press Photographers Association (NPPA) guidelines for 
Police/Press relations and we "English-ise" them.

That I did and we adapted them for UK use and Stafford****re Police's 
then Chief Constable, John Giffard, endorsed them. Every serving 
Stafford****re policeman/woman was given a copy.

Things genuinely did improve and I found much less problems at major 
incidents.

It's quite ironic that these same guidelines were taken by other people 
and effectively claimed as 'their own' and submitted to the likes of 
the NUJ etc.

Me, I'm not really bothered - I don't have any need to claim that I was 
the first to do this, I'm just happy to have done my bit.

-- 
Neil Barker