There\u2019s currently an \u201copen season on policing\u201d, South Yorkshire Police Federation has said, after a survey found that only 14% of all police stories in the national press were positive.<\/p>\n
Martis Media read the seven major national newspapers every day throughout April 2024. There were 752 stories that mentioned policing: 102 (13.5%) were positive; 424 (56.3%) were neutral; and 226 (30%) were negative.<\/p>\n
South Yorkshire Police Federation Chair Steve Kent said: \u201cI don\u2019t want to tar everyone with the same brush, because there are some media outlets that do promote the good work of the police and I thank them for that.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut speaking very generally, the way that the press treats the police in this country is disgraceful. It\u2019s not helped by the tone set by politicians and the lack of pushback by senior police leaders. It\u2019s almost like it\u2019s open season on policing.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you look at any organisation and you turn over some stones, you will find dirt, you will find bad behaviour. We are not an apologist for that kind of stuff in policing and we want to uproot it as much as anybody else.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut, by observation and speaking to colleagues in other sectors, policing is well ahead of the curve in the way we root out corruption.<\/p>\n
\u201cYet we are still lambasted for it and it needs to change, because the negative drip-drip effect has a massive impact on our cops\u2019 morale and also the way the public perceives the police. If we have scumbags, they need to be sorted. But 99.9% of our cops are heroes and it\u2019s disgraceful the way they\u2019re treated.\u201d<\/p>\n