How effective is the media code at limiting the media behaviour?

The purpose of the media code of practice is to filter out
unnecessary, speculative, and subjective details from the information that is to be
delivered as news to the community.

The code of practice is
effective as a philosophy because the job of the media is to report, entertain,
persuade, and inform, not to become entangled in dramatic details: That is what
theatrics and drama are for.

As for its actual
effectiveness, the fact is that as of today England's yellow press continues to squeeze
celebrities who love the excessive detail and attention paid to their daily lives just
for the sake of exposure. There are still publications who "leak" information and
publish it, not worrying about the potential repercussions that could
occur.

As of recently, I can think of one effective thing
the code of practice did and it was when 14 years ago the code basically
begged papparazzis that the pictures of Princess Diana's dead body in a crash were not
published in any magazine. And people know that they WERE taking pictures of her and her
crash, who knows if while she was still battling for her
life.

Autopsy pictures, suicide pictures, pictures of dead
children, rape victims, dismembered victims, etc are the primary target to be avoided
for publication.