1. The Regulatory and Ethical Framework
IPSO Editors’ Code Clause 12 (Discrimination) names religion as a protected characteristic and prohibits both pejorative or prejudicial reference to it and irrelevant reference where belief is not germane to the story. Clause 1 (Accuracy) requires care not to publish inaccurate or misleading information, which applies directly to descriptions of beliefs, practices, denominations, and figures on hate incidents.
For broadcasters, the Ofcom Broadcasting Code addresses religion in Section 4, including the rule that religious programmes must not improperly exploit the susceptibilities of audiences or abuse the views of adherents. Section 3 covers crime, disorder, hatred, and abuse, including material likely to incite hatred on grounds such as religion. The NUJ Code of Conduct asks members to mention religion only where relevant, and IMPRESS-regulated titles are bound by an equivalent discrimination article.
This guide sets out professional standards; it does not take a position on any theological or political question. See also: Diversity Reporting by Community.
2. The Relevance Test for Mentioning Religion
The central question under Clause 12 is whether a person’s religion is genuinely material to the story. Religion is relevant in coverage of a faith event, a religiously motivated hate crime, or a person acting in a religious capacity. It is not relevant in a routine crime, accident, or business report where belief has no bearing on events. Mentioning religion without that justification — even without pejorative language — can breach Clause 12.
Apply the same discipline to inference. Do not deduce religion from a name, appearance, or national origin, and do not use religion as shorthand for ethnicity. Where religion is relevant, state it accurately and without implying that a wider community shares responsibility for an individual’s conduct.
3. Not Treating a Faith Community as Monolithic
Faith communities contain a wide range of beliefs, practices, denominations, and opinions, and no single person speaks for all adherents. Reporting should avoid generalising from one individual’s actions to a whole religion, and should not present a single spokesperson as authoritative for everyone. Seek a range of voices from within the community, distinguish traditions and denominations accurately, and never imply collective responsibility for the acts of individuals. This reflects the accuracy duty in Clause 1, the non-discrimination duty in Clause 12, and the Ofcom Code’s provisions on fairness and avoiding harmful stereotyping.
4. Accurate Representation of Beliefs and Practices
Descriptions of doctrine, ritual, dress, dietary rules, festivals, and sacred texts should be accurate and free of condescension. Check terminology and context with practitioners or a reputable reference rather than relying on assumption. Explaining a practice neutrally is a Clause 1 accuracy obligation; presenting it as strange, threatening, or inferior can engage Clause 12.
Terminology and titles
Use the community's own terms for its practices, roles, and places of worship, spelled and capitalised correctly. Where usage varies between traditions, reflect that rather than imposing a single label.
Belief vs practice vs individual
Distinguish what a tradition teaches, what a particular community does, and what one individual chooses. These are not the same, and collapsing them produces inaccuracy.
Context for the unfamiliar
Explain unfamiliar practices in neutral terms rather than framing them as exotic or suspicious. Provide enough context for a general reader without editorialising on their validity.
5. Care With Images and Sacred Contexts
Images carry meaning, and some faith traditions have specific sensitivities around depiction, sacred spaces, and religious objects. Consider whether an image is accurate to the story and whether entering or photographing a place of worship respects the community’s conventions and any access permissions. A photograph used to imply threat, or a caption that generalises from one worshipper to a whole faith, can distort coverage. Accurate, respectful captioning and appropriate permissions are the professional standard, consistent with Clause 1 and the Ofcom Code’s standards on offence and context.
6. Legitimate Scrutiny vs Stigmatisation
Scrutiny of an institution — for example reporting a safeguarding failure within a specific organisation — is legitimate and in the public interest, and religious bodies are not exempt from accountability. Stigmatisation occurs when the failings of one institution or individual are attributed to an entire faith community, or when belief is invoked where it is not relevant. The distinction is between holding a body to account on the evidence and implying collective guilt. Report the specific institution, the specific facts, and the specific people responsible, and avoid framing that generalises from them to all adherents, which can engage Clause 12.
7. Monitoring Bodies as Sources
Independent monitoring organisations publish data on religiously motivated hate incidents that journalists and policymakers use. Cite them neutrally, with clear attribution, and describe their remit and methodology accurately rather than presenting their figures as official government counts.
Community Security Trust (CST)
A charity that monitors antisemitism and provides security advice to the Jewish community. Its incident reports are widely cited; attribute figures to CST and describe its methodology and remit accurately.
Tell MAMA
An organisation that records anti-Muslim incidents (Measuring Anti-Muslim Attacks). Cite it as a monitoring body, attribute figures clearly, and avoid presenting its data as an official statistic unless that is the case.
Official statistics for comparison
Where relevant, set monitoring-body figures alongside Home Office police-recorded hate crime data on GOV.UK, explaining that the two count different things and are not directly interchangeable.
8. Red Flags
- ⚠Naming a person's religion in a story where belief has no bearing on events (Clause 12)
- ⚠Generalising from one individual's conduct to a whole faith community
- ⚠Presenting a single spokesperson as authoritative for an entire religion
- ⚠Inferring religion from a name, appearance, or national origin
- ⚠Describing beliefs or practices inaccurately or with condescension
- ⚠Citing a monitoring body's figures without attribution, methodology, or context
- ⚠Using images that imply threat or breach the conventions of a sacred space
9. Reporting Checklist
Ethics & Language Tools
Check the full IPSO clause reference and use the Ethics Flowchart to test whether a reference to a person’s religion is relevant and justified in your story.
11. Common Mistakes
- ›Treating a whole faith as responsible for individuals: The actions of one person or institution do not implicate every adherent. Report the specific facts and people, not the community as a whole.
- ›Assuming religion from ethnicity or name: A person from a particular background is not necessarily an adherent of any religion. Never infer belief from name, appearance, or national origin.
- ›Presenting monitoring data as official statistics: CST and Tell MAMA figures come from monitoring organisations with their own methodologies. Attribute clearly and distinguish them from police-recorded data.
- ›Confusing scrutiny with stigmatisation: Holding an institution to account on the evidence is legitimate; implying collective guilt for a whole faith is not. Keep the focus on the specific body and facts.