A section of the proposed Defamation Bill which will allow newspapers to apologise where they have made genuine errors is a "terribly important" part of planned reform of the libel laws, the new Press Ombudsman John Horgan said.
Prof Horgan said he believes his role will allow disputes between newspapers and members of the public who make complaints about them to happen "by negotiation".
Press Ombudsman Prof John Horgan
Speaking on the Marian Finucaneradio programme on RTE radio, Prof Horgan said: "First of all, I think newspapers' own in-house way of handling complaints is probably going to improve, because if they have the choice or the ability to sort out something themselves, first day, so that I don't become involved at all, they will do it," he said.
Asked if the new system would allow newspapers to apologise without incriminating themselves, Prof Horgan said: "That depends. If that particular section of the Defamation Bill becomes law, it will allow newspapers to apologise without laying themselves open to huge actions for damages."
That was a "terribly important" part of the reforms, he added.
"People think that newspapers don't apologise just because they are being macho or rude or whatever...and they don't realise that there are quite horrendous consequences for newspapers when they do apologise.
"So the new Bill, if that becomes law, will change that quite radically. I think all newspapers are quite prepared to put their hands up when they make a genuine mistake," Prof Horgan said.
"When you think that a big fat newspaper now will process maybe 200,000 words in a night, it's inevitable that mistakes are going to be made. This new system is part of a way of acknowledging that and helping to put things right."
Responding to submissions from listeners about media coverage of certain funerals, Prof Horgan said this was an area where public representatives "have mentioned to me that something needs to be done".
"It is part of our [journalists'] code. It's a code of professional practice, it's not a code of morals as such.
"What we are trying to do is to inculcate by persuasion and not by coercion, best professional practice in journalism generally in Ireland. I think that we do have different standards here [than in Britain] and we will be developing different standards here, both in terms of media behaviour and in terms of the kind of decisions that we in the Press Council and the Ombudsman's office will be making."
The Press Council and Press Ombudsman's office is funded by the newspaper industry, but is independent. Prof Horgan's role will be to examine complaints from the public. More difficult cases or those where his rulings are disputed will be referred to the 13-member Press Council, which will have a lay majority.
Speaking to journalists in Tullamore, Co Offaly last month, Prof Horgan said his role would be to address grievances of the public and that he would issue decisions only in cases where it was impossible to reach agreement on a resolution between the reader and the newspaper.
He said his office would not institute inquiries, get involved in proceedings that were before the courts, or examine complaints based on matters of taste. The Press Council would make journalists accountable in a way they were never accountable in the past.