How NOT To Travel

I am currently writing this from a cramped and noisy train, on my way back to Uni after a nice weekend home with the family.
I decided to travel by train instead of driving the 200+mile round trip, as it would save money on petrol, and would save the wear and tear on my beloved yet rather old and fragile car. However, what I did not anticipate was the traumatising level of stress that would be experienced by travelling via train.
It is one thing for public services to offer great deals etc on prices, but what good are they when the service itself is as reliable as chocolate teapot.
Commuters are forever complaining of cancellations, delays and the abominable train service in general, and today I have realised, much to my disgust, that I have become one of them.
The odd delay I can handle, these things happen, but everybody has the right to get from one destination to another without too much difficulty.
How can it be possible to fly from one country to another without much hassle, yet to sit on a rocket on wheels can seem more stressful than moving house.
Firstly, timetabled trains get delayed, with very little warning or explanation. This is always going to cause problems to travellers. Many people will just think, oh well, I'll get the next one, but what about those that are at smaller stations with a non-regular train service? Nobody wants to wait an hour for a train if they need to be somewhere. Is it really fair that these passengers then have the option of waiting for another train, or if there isn't one, somehow finding a way of getting to a different station?

This is my story. As mentioned above, my first train from a small station called Weston Milton at 11.13, was cancelled, with very little warning. This left me with the predicament of waiting an hour for the next train, or finding a way of getting 2 miles to the main station in Weston-super-Mare in time for the 11.45 train.
This caused problems for me, as I had an advance booking on a train in Bristol at 12.23. I decided to chance the 11.45 train, hoping it would get into Bristol on time, and I would have 5 minutes to board a train to Southampton. Being such an unreliable service, I am sure you can guess what happened next. I get off the train at Bristol and see my train standing at the platform. The doors had already been closed and the guard would not let us board. I had made it just in time to wave my connection goodbye as it left without me and a handful of other passengers. Said guard very nearly ended up under said train.
I'm sure many of you can appreciate the stressful situation. As if my day hasn't been bad enough, I am now stranded in Bristol, with exams in 24 hours time. The guard advised us all to get on a later train to Brighton (which I am now on). After getting on this train and finally heading in the right direction, the ticket collector was kind enough to point out that my ticket was not valid on this train, as the reservation was pre-booked on a previous train. Of course, I'm not a moron, and I'm perfectly capable of reading a train ticket. I then had to explain to the guard my story and he let me stay.
I thought this was the end of my horror journey, and that I would be able to relax and wind down for the rest of the trip, however, this wasn't the case. A disgruntled man has just approached me and told me he has reserved the seat I am currently occupying.
My final point now is that the guard in Bristol told me to get on this train to get back to Uni, only now as I am sat on it as it trundles through the country, the driver has announced the station stops. Guess what? Southampton isn't one of them. I now have to go onto Eastleigh, and wait for a train to Winch. What would be a simple journey has turned into a hellishly complicated 4 hours long, 5 train mess.
Thank you for reading my boring rant.
Much love x

News Writing

A student has been praised after saving a pensioner from a fire in a Stanmore home earlier this week.

20-year-old Edward Herbert heard a smoke alarm and noticed flames coming from his elderly neighbours ground floor kitchen in Chatham Road, Winchester.

The student used a ladder to enter the property, where the pensioner was trapped in his top-floor bedroom, and dragged the man to the window until emergency services arrived.

Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service received the urgent call at 21.17 on Monday 7th December, and sent 2 teams from Winchester Fire Service and 1 from Eastleigh Fire Service to the scene.

Firefighters used a ladder from a fire appliance to rescue the pair from the top floor while further crews tackled the blaze in the kitchen.

Edward later said, “ I just wanted to get him out. He was holding my hand and I was telling him it would be ok. He fainted on me twice, and that was really scary, because I thought the worst. I’m definitely going to go and see him in hospital and make sure he’s ok.”

Inspector Johnson stated that the fire is still “under investigation” but is thought to have been caused by a fault in an electrical appliance.

The pensioner was taken to hospital with smoke inhalation and is in a stable condition.

Winchester Fire Station Watch Manager Chris Roper has emphasized, “This kind of incident demonstrates the importance of every home in Hampshire having at least on working smoke alarm in place”

World Cup

So there we have it! All the excitement and tension is over-the draw has been made!
Much to fans relief England were seeded in the same pot as threats such as Brazil, and Argentina, however many people were still tense about the odds of drawing Portugal or France.
Luckily, in my opinion, we have avoided any major threat, drawing America, Algeria and Slovenia in our group.
My personal opinion is that we will get through the group stage, along with America, but our dreams will be dashed by Germany or Australia in the first round of the knockout stage.
I hope this is not the case, as the battle for 3rd place will take place on my birthday, with the final being the next day, and it would be nice to celebrate alongside the rest of the country if England are victorious!
Other teams however, were not so lucky. Group G dubbed "The Group of Death" consists of Brazil, Portugal, Ivory Coast and North Korea, which will provide some very competitive and enjoyable football. Again, my prediction is for Brazil and Portugal to progress to the further stages of the tournament.
Hosts South Africa were also not quite so lucky, drawing France, Mexico and Uruguay, and unfortunately I must say I can see France and Mexico going through, leaving our hosts bitterly disappointed.
Group B is made up of Argentina, South Korea, Nigeria and Greece, with my personal opinion being that Argentina and Greece will proceed to the knockout stages.
Group D consists of Germany, Australia, Serbia and Ghana. No guesses whose going through in that group!
Group E is the Netherlands, Japan, Cameroon and Denmark. I think that Denmark will be top of the group, but the fight for the remaining qualifying place will be tough.
Group F is Italy, New Zealand, Paraquay and Slovakia, and again, I believe Italy will be top of the group, but any of the other teams have the ability to beat the others to the qualifying place.
The final group, H, is made up of Spain, Honduras, Chile and Switzerland. My guess is that Spain and Switzerland will go onto the knockout stages.

To clarify, my personal World Cup predictions are that the following teams will get through the group stage and fight it out for a place in the quarter finals:
England, America, Brazil, Portugal, France, Mexico, Argentina, Greece, Germany, Australia, Denmark, The Netherlands, Italy, Spain and Switzerland with the last remaining place going to either New Zealand, Paraguay or Slovakia.

The groups have been paired up for the next round, A playing B, C playing D etc.

Therefore, going by my predictions, it will be:

France and Mexico vs Argentina and Greece
England and USA vs Germany and Australia
Denmark and Netherlands vs Italy and ?
Brazil and Portugal vs Spain and Switzerland

Focusing on Englands group (C), if we do get through the group stage, we go on to face Germany or Australia, which is where I fear our World Cup dreams will be dashed, and our hopes will be put to rest for another 4 years.
However, I'm not psychic, and believe that anything can happen when those players step onto the pitch.
Time will tell.

News Writing

The search for a Dorset fisherman, missing since Tuesday December 1st, has been called off by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.

Osman Sharif, a 32 year old Somalian man, disappeared from Mudeford Quay, sparking an air, sea and shoreline search after he failed to return to his London home.

Sharif's inflatable boat was discovered along the shore at Chewton Bunny, Hampshire, but the search was called off at 2.20pm on Wednesday December 2nd, after attempts to find him failed.

Inspector Tracey Baker, of Dorset Police said: “We will continue to work with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency and the requirement for further searches will be dependent on any further information we may receive concerning the missing man or his whereabouts.”

Anyone with information about the missing man or his whereabouts should call Dorset Police in confidence on 01202 or 01305 22 22 22.

News Report

Hampshire County Council have launched a campaign to raise awareness of driving under the influence of drink and drugs.

Taxis can be spotted across Hampshire with the slogan “You drink, I’ll drive” to promote responsible behaviour.

The campaign is running for six weeks over Christmas, using 32 taxis across the county following the charity, Brake’s, Road Safety Week.

They are currently running in Basingstoke, Gosport, Winchester, Andover, Aldershot, Farnborough, Petersfield, and Alton.

According to Brake, nearly 16,000 people in the UK were killed or injured by drink and drug drivers in 2007.

Locals are also being encouraged to ask their pharmacist if medication will affect driving ability, in an attempt to raise awareness of drug driving.

County Councillor, Mel Kendal, the Executive Member for Environment, said: “We want everyone to get home safely. Having just one drink, or taking drugs will impair your driving skills. Driving whilst under the influence is extremely dangerous and could cause serious harm to you and other innocent road users. If you’re going to have a drink or take drugs, including medicine that carries a warning about side effects, then don’t drive!”

Driving under the influence of legal or illegal drugs carries the same penalty as drink driving. This may be a 12 month driving ban, £5,000 fine and up to six months imprisonment.

News Agenda

This module has been about news agenda, which is looking at what news is, and how it is used to make a profit. This involves looking at the relationship between the producer and the consumer, otherwise known as the audience, as these are the people who pay journalists wages. Mass media has a large influence on their audience by their choice of stories which are considered as “newsworthy” and how they are presented. Without an audience, there would be no journalism industry, which is why publishers compete with each other, in a bid to reach a more extensive audience, and thus make more money. However, no single publication can appeal to people of all genders, ages, classes etc, especially with regard to differences in political opinion. Therefore, publications tend to focus on a specific audience. For example, the Sun does not appeal to the same audience that the Independent appeals to.
Audiences are categorised using a demographic classification known as ABC1/C2DE:
A: Upper middle class, such as professionals, those in higher managerial positions etcB: Middle class, including those in intermediate managerial positions.
C1: Lower middle class, for example, supervisors, clerical or managerial workers.
C2: Skilled working class
D: Working class such as semi or unskilled manual workers
E: Unemployed, also including those on benefits and pensioners.
The newspaper I have been analysing is the Daily Star, founded in 1978. This is a tabloid newspaper, otherwise known as a “red-top, with a circulation of 768,543. This paper is owned by Richard Desmond, and published by Northern and Shell media, who also publish the Daily Express. This is why certain issues of the newspaper show a partnership between the papers. An example of this is the Sunday Star on November 8th, which advertised the Sunday Express for a cheaper price.
The political view of this paper is right-wing, dealing with issues such as asylum seekers and anti-social behaviour. However, most of the stories featured in this newspaper are celebrity stories, sport, news, gossip or about popular TV shows such as reality TV and soap operas. This is because they are the things most likely to appeal to their target audience, which are male 19-35 year olds, of the C2DE demographic category.
Other regular features of this paper are topless models (a key indicator of the target audience), gossip columns, and reviews on latest television and music, a forum of readers letters, and a strip cartoon called “Beau Peep”.
The radio station I have been analysing is BBC Radio 3. This station was first aired in 1967 as part of the BBC, and is licensed in London. The BBC do not have a specific political viewpoint, however has been criticised in the past for having a left-wing bias. Unlike the Daily Star, this station is aimed at both males and females, aged 50+, of the ABC1 category. Statistics over the last 3 years have shown that BBC Radio 3 is listened to by 4% of the population, bearing in mind the population increases every year, so although the percentage remains the same, the number of listeners is increasing. Average listening hours has also remained at 6 per quarter over the last 3 years. The station features many programmes throughout the day, specialising in classical, jazz and world music, as well as drama, culture and arts. I chose to analyse the news bulletin featured at the beginning of the Breakfast show, which runs from 7-10am. The news featured is generally regarding breaking news, world news, the NHS, war, government and politics, unlike the Daily Star, who base their news around celebrities.

HCJ Lecture

The notes for this lecture have been added to a previous blog (A Mystery of History (of Journalism)) This blog featured a timeline of events, which I have updated after todays lecture.

Media Law: Codes of Conduct

Todays lecture featured mainly the Press Complaints Commision (PCC) Code of Conduct.
The function of the code is to provide a set of principles, and a clear, consistent framework in which journalists may work.
These guidelines do not constitute the law, but it is a serious issue if the guidelines are broken.
The code is reviewed by the Code of Practice Commitee, who constantly review and develop it to adapt to changing practices and advances in technology.
The committee is made up of members from across the industry, such as magazine and newspaper editors via nomination.
The original code was published in 1991, and has been changed approximately 30 times since:
http://www.pcc.org.uk/cop/evolving.html

PCC Code Of Conduct

1. Accuracy: All information must not be inaccurate, misleading or distorted, including images. In the event of such inaccuracy, it must be rectified immediately, and if required, an apology made. The Press must also clearly distinguish between comment and fact.

2. Opportunity to Reply: A fair opportunity to reply to inaccuracies must be given.

3. Privacy: Everybody is entitled to privacy regarding their family life, health etc. Intrusion without content must be justified.

4. Harrassment: Once asked to stop, journalists must not continue to interview, question, telephone or photograph, nor remain on the property or follow the individual.

5. Intrusion into Grief or Shock: Approaches and enquiries must be made with sensitivity and discretion.

6. Children: Children must be allowed to complete school time, and must not be photographed or approached at school without consent. Minors also must not be paid for their part in any material, and editors must not use the fame or publicity of parents to publish details of a childs private life.

7. Children in Sex Cases: Children in sex cases must not be identified, and the report must not imply a relationship between the accused and the child.

8. Hospitals: Journalists must identify themselves and obtain permission before making enquiries at hospitals.

9. Reporting of Crime: Only relevant relatives to a crime can be identified. Other relatives must not be mentioned without consent.

10. Clandestine Devices and Subterfuge: Material must not be obtained using hidden cameras or clandestine listening devices, or by intercepting telephone calls, messages, or emails.

11. Victims of Sexual Assault: Such victims must not be identified.

12. Discrimination: Details of an individual's race, colour, religion, sexual orientation, physical or mental illness or disability must be avoided unless genuinely relevant to the story.

13. Financial Journalism: Journalists must not use it financial information they receive in advance of its general publication, nor should they pass such information to others, for their own profit.

14. Confidential Sources: Journalists have a moral obligation to protect confidential sources of information.

15. Witness Payments in Criminal Trials: Witnesses must not be offered any form of payment.

16. Payment to Criminals: Payment must not be offered for information relating to a crime, including stories, pictures or information.

There may be exceptions to some of the points above, with regard to public interest.

1. The public interest includes, but is not confined to:
i) Detecting or exposing crime or serious impropriety.
ii) Protecting public health and safety.
iii) Preventing the public from being misled by an action or statement of an individual or organisation.
2. There is a public interest in freedom of expression itself.
3. Whenever the public interest is invoked, the PCC will require editors to demonstrate fully that they reasonably believed that publication, or journalistic activity undertaken with a view to publication, would be in the public interest.
4. The PCC will consider the extent to which material is already in the public domain, or will become so.
5. In cases involving children under 16, editors must demonstrate an exceptional public interest to over-ride the normally paramount interest of the child.

Media Law: Investigative Journalism

Unfortunately I was at a funeral during this lecture so the lecture notes can be found here:
http://journalism.winchester.ac.uk/?page=231

History and Context: Rousseau

Jean Jacques Rousseau lived from 1712-1778, whose political philosophy influenced the French Revolution. He is known as the founder of Romanticism, and was interested in the state of nature, before Government existed.

"The first man who, having fenced in a piece of land, said "This is mine," and found people naive enough to believe him, that man was the true founder of civil society. From how many crimes, wars, and murders, from how many horrors and misfortunes might not any one have saved mankind, by pulling up the stakes, or filling up the ditch, and crying to his fellows: Beware of listening to this impostor; you are undone if you once forget that the fruits of the earth belong to us all, and the earth itself to nobody.”
— Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Discourse on Inequality, 1754

One of Rousseau's most influential works is "The Social Contract"

http://www.constitution.org/jjr/socon_01.htm

It was published in 1762 in which Rousseau claims that the state of nature was a primitive condition without law or morality According to Rousseau, by joining together into civil society through the social contract and abandoning their claims of natural right, individuals can both preserve themselves and remain free. This is because submission to the authority of the general will of the people as a whole guarantees individuals ensures that they obey themselves because they are, collectively, the authors of the law. Therefore, the General Will was made up of laws which all the people agreed with, and so they are obeying only themselves.

Rousseau also argues that soveriegnty should be in the hands of the people, however the Government, composed of Magistrates, should enforce the law.

Rousseau also famously said that those who do not obey the general will will be forced to be free, as they are going against themselves.

One of Rousseau's followers was Maximilien Robespierre, later used this, alongside the idea that man should have the right to own property, but not too much, and created the guillotine. He used this device to execute all those whom broke the general will, including King Louis XVI, amongst 20,000 others in the Reign of Terror. He was later executed himself.

Copyright

The law of copyright came to Britain in 1709, and became a crime in 1911.
It protects all substantial intellectual property including literary, musical, dramatic or artistic works, and enables journalism to exist as a business, as without it, there would be no profit. This idea that "journalism is the business of turning information into money" uses copyright in doing so, as although there is no copyright in news and information, the way in which it is written or expressed is protected under copyright law.
Journalist and Journalism Tutor, Chris Horrie, wrote an article on "How To Copyright Yourself" due to recent arguments of DNA and genetic engineering.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1494746.stm

Any work you do belongs to you until you sell the rights to it to another party. This may be in the form of wages or employment, as accepting wages for your work means you are giving up the rights to it.
This is the same with intellectual work, as the law sees no difference in work done by hand or by brain. Another way of protecting your work is to license it.

1) Once you have sold your work for a set sum e.g wages, if it is then sold on for more money, the creator does not recieve any other payment. For example, if a journalist writes an article, and gets paid £200, but the article is then published and earns the company £1000, the journalist has already recieved their payment.
2) You can negotiate a different type of contract in which you recieve some of the money if the article is resold. This may be instead of, or for less, wages. More likely you can be a freelance journalist and license your work to publications. This means you keep all rights to your work, and it is returned to you after a set period.

Several exclusive rights typically attach to the holder of a copyright:

-to produce copies or reproductions of the work and to sell those copies (mechanical rights; including, sometimes, electronic copies: distribution rights)
-to import or export the work[citation needed]
-to create derivative works (works that adapt the original work)
-to perform or display the work publicly (performance rights)
-to sell or assign these rights to others
-to transmit or display by radio or video (broadcasting rights)

There is a defence of "fair dealing" available to journalists regarding copyright of news in the public interest. You can lift a short quote from another source, providing the original author is attributed to it.

From the statute:
It is an offence to perform any of the following acts without the consent of the owner:
Copy the work.
Rent, lend or issue copies of the work to the public.
Perform, broadcast or show the work in public.
Adapt the work.
The author of a work, or a director of a film may also have certain moral rights:
The right to be identified as the author.
Right to object to derogatory treatment.

There are certain factors which affect fair dealing:
-the purpose and character of the use;
-the nature of the copyrighted work;
-the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and
-the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work

You can use copyrighted materials only in the following ways: (from the statute)
* Private and research study purposes.
* Performance, copies or lending for educational purposes.
* Criticism and news reporting.
* Incidental inclusion.
* Copies and lending by librarians.
* Acts for the purposes of royal commissions, statutory enquiries, judicial proceedings and parliamentary purposes.
* Recording of broadcasts for the purposes of listening to or viewing at a more convenient time, this is known as "time shifting".
* Producing a back up copy for personal use of a computer program.
* Playing sound recording for a non profit making organisation, club or society.


Please note: These notes have been collaborated using other sources, including Chris Horries Lecture Notes and wikipedia. I have not copyrighted this work :-)

The Mystery of History (of Journalism)

Journalism is the business of turning information, into money" -Chris Horrie
So when did all this journalism business start? The world has come a long way today, the language we use must have originated somewhere, and many historical events have shaped the way we share and receive information.
So lets take a look back at the beginning of Journalism:

6000 BC: The first language is formed: Chinese. Their pictographic script gave symbols a meaning, which was taught to others as a way of communication.
http://img.chinaa2z.com/uploadpic/learn/Sinology/2008/20081226/20081226152010712143/1230276366.jpg
4000 BC: Egyptian hieroglyphics: This was also a symbolic, picture based language.
http://www.jimloy.com/hiero/yourname.gif
3800 BC: Summarian Cuneiform script: This was a breakthrough in language, as it used abstract strokes and lines to form words, rather than pictures and symbols.
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/89/254519011_79d693fa8f_o.jpg
740 BC: Lindisfarne Gospel: A manuscript written in a way based on latinate characters.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/tyne/content/images/2006/11/24/lindisfarne_gospel_331x470.jpg
1440s: Guttenburg's printing press: The glorious inventions which keeps journo's in a job!http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/french/sable/recherche/catalogues/annual_register/images/printing_press.jpg
1460s: The Italian Renassiance: This has been covered in previous blog entries.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renaissance
1517: Martin Luther's 95 Theses: Regarded as a catalyst for the Protestant Reformation
http://www.spurgeon.org/~phil/history/95theses.htm
1540: King Henry VIII: Need I say more? What a tyrant!
http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/Homework/Tudors/henrytimeline.htm
1563: Foxe's book of Martyrs: A work of the Reformation.
http://www.biblestudytools.com/History/AD/FoxsBookofMartyrs/
1564-1569: Sir John Hawkins, the first English slave trader (2000 in the WIndies by 1600)
http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/TUDhawkinsJ.htm
1588: Spanish Armada: King Phillip felt like invading us, because he was skint?http://www.britainexpress.com/History/tudor/armada.htm
1620: The Mayflower: Pilgrims travelled to the "New World". Transport is improving!http://americanhistory.suite101.com/article.cfm/themayflowerreachesamerica
1641-1651: English Civil War: England went to war...with itself.
http://easyweb.easynet.co.uk/~crossby/ECW/
1651: The Navigation Acts (War with the Dutch merchants) Lasts almost 100 years.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Navigation_Acts
1660: Restoration: Charles II restored the monastries in England, Scotland and Ireland.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_Restoration
1667: John Locke: An Essay Into Human Understanding: I'm not going into all this again!http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/locke/
1688: The Glorious Revolution: I dont need to write anything, because this site does it for me.
http://www.thegloriousrevolution.org/
1690: Battle of the Boyne: Everyone began picking on poor Ireland...
http://www.irelandseye.com/aarticles/history/events/dates/ch5.shtm
1698: Royal Africa Company chartered (Slave/ penal labour trade ‘privatised’)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_African_Company
1700: The Birth of Isaac Newton: A very influential part of modern life.
http://www.newton.ac.uk/newtlife.html
1702: The Daily Courant: The first national newspaper is created and published nationally.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daily_Courant
1703: Daniel Defoe: Writer. Journalist. Pamphleteer. This guy's got it all!http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/Jdefoe.htm
1704: Final collapse of the Darien Scheme (Mercantile Scottish colony - bankruptcy). http://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/Scotland-History/DarienScheme.htm
1707: Act of Union with Scotland - Robert Burns
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z7ncizeO2jk
1709: The Spectator/The Tatler: Birth of Periodical Press, more info soon on Journalism Now.
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/5428/Joseph-Addison/45/The-Tatler-and-The-Spectator
1719: Daniel Defoe - Robinson Crusoe (500 books and pamphlets, English spy)http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/Jdefoe.htm
1729 - Irish Famine - Swift, A Modest Proposal
http://art-bin.com/art/omodest.html
1731: Hogarth-Gin Alley: The first of photojournalism.
http://dougboren.homestead.com/files/400ginlane.jpg
1745: Battle of Culloden (failed Jacobite revolt - end of tribal society in Great Britain)http://www.britishbattles.com/battle_of_culloden.htm
1759: Adam Smith : Theory of Moral Sentiments
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Theory_of_Moral_Sentiments
1775: Samuel Johnsons Dictionary: The first English Dictionary.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Dictionary_of_the_English_Language
1776: American Revolution: "A unique and radical event"
http://www.theamericanrevolution.org/
1776: Adam Smith : The Wealth of Nations
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wealth_of_Nations
1783: The Zong case - English law holds that slaves are not people, but livestock
http://wilberforce.1kit.com/1kit/SlaveShip/TheZong/tabid/3799/Default.aspx
1789: French Revolution: If the Americans got one, the French wanted one to.
http://www.fsmitha.com/h3/h33-fr.html
1815: Battle of Waterloo: Another battle, after Napolean was forced to abdicate.
http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/waterloo.htm
1830: William Cobbett: Rural Rides
http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/text/contents_page.jsp?t_id=Cobbett
1831: The Baptist War (slave revolt in Jamaica - nb - continuous resistance to slavery)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baptist_War
1832: Parliamentary Reform Bill - political power shifts to the manufacturing towns, the north
http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/PR1832.htm
1833: Abolition of Slavery in the British Empire (Emancipation of West Indian slaves)http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/Lslavery33.htm
1846: Repeal of the Corn Laws (final end of mercantile system). http://www.victorianweb.org/history/cornlaws2.html
1850s: Manchester: Peak of factory system/Free Trade/Industrial Revolution/Liberalism.
http://www.manchester2002-uk.com/history/victorian/Victorian1.html

Media Law: Confidentiality

Whilst studying libel, I learnt that in court cases, the offending person does not have to prove that they have been harmed by the defamation, but prove beyond reasonable doubt, that the publication could cause harm to them. With privacy, the person has to prove that they have been harmed in some way. For example, businessmen must prove that their company has lost money due to the breach of confidentiality.

The 3 main areas of concern regarding confidentiality are:

1. State Secrets (e.g Government, Army)
2. Commercial Secrets
3. Privacy

The law states that a person who has obtained information in confidence must not take unfair advantage of it.

The 3 elements of a breach of confidence are:

1. The information must have "necessary quality of confidence"
2. The information must have been imparted in circumstances imposing an obligation of confidence
3. The unauthorised information is detrimental to the party communicating it.

All of the above must occur together in order for it to be a breach of confidentiality.
People who believe they will have their confidence breached can ask for an injunction. Judges can grant injunctions preventing all publications from printing confidential information.
Disobeying and injunction can result in an action for contempt of court.
Courts use breach of confidence actions to prevent "the unjustified publication of private information"
Courts can also order journalists to reveal the name of their source who provided them with confidential information.
Article 8 of the Convention of Human Rights guarantee the right to privacy. The most favoured way to protect privacy has been the action for breach of confidence.
Judges are prepared to infer a relationship requiring confidentiality where no other obvious relationship exists. They also ask whether the claimant had "a reasonable expectation of privacy"
However, the good news for the journalists is that there is a defence that publication is in the public interest.

A Journo's Guide On How Not To Breach Confidence

Step 1: Announce that you are a journalist
Step 2: Provide details of the publication
Step 3: Warn persons involved of breach of confidence. Treat them like idiots to make them understand that information they may divulge, if published, may lead to them losing their jobs, and generally ruining their lives.

Gagging Clauses: If a person is employed by another, they owe the employer a common law "duty of confidence" even if it is not specified in the contract. This secrecy could extend to matters of public concern. In these cases, there is a duty to report this to the employer.
The concept of public interest, in basic terms, is the opposite of malice.
The Press Complaints Commission (PCC) define code of conduct in the following ways:

• Material that exposed crime when police have failed to do so.
• Exposing harm to the community
• Public being misled

Below is a link for Public Concern At Work, otherwise known as whistleblowers:
http://www.pcaw.co.uk/

Important cases into this topic are:
Graham Pink- NHS worker fired for highlighting poor hospital conditions.
Bill Goodwin- Journalist who refused to identify a source in court.

Seminar Paper on John Locke

John Locke: 1632-1704 was a hugely influential writer, and is considered to be the first Empricist, claiming that the mind is like a blank slate at birth. Empiricism is the theory of knowledge that believes that knowledge comes from experience, unlike philosophers such as Descartes who believed in innate ideas. Believers of innate ideas believe that the mind is born with knowledge and ideas. “Epitome to the Treatise” printed in 1688 was condemned by many people because it denied innate ideas.
Locke was born and baptised on 29th August in Wrington, Somerset, about 10 miles away from my home town of Weston-super-Mare.
Locke’s father, also named John, worked in the Parliamentary Army against the royalists during the civil war, and fled to Holland in 1683 after the Rye House Plot to assassinate King Charles II and his brother James. Locke was concerned about James II coming to the throne, and so stayed in the Netherlands until the Glorious Revolution. This was when James II was overthrown by Parliamentarians and William of Orange, who took the throne.
Quote: “The commonwealth of learning is not at this time without master-builders, whose mighty designs, in advancing the sciences, will leave lasting monuments to the admiration of posterity: but every one must not hope to be a Boyle or a Sydenham; and in an age that produces such masters as the great Huygenius and the incomparable Mr. Newton, with some others of that strain, it is ambition enough to be employed as an under-labourer in clearing the ground a little, and removing some of the rubbish that lies in the way to knowledge”
Locke knew all these men and their work, therefore, describing himself as an “under-labourer” may not just be him being modest but also may be the contrast between their positive achievements, and his own personal attempts to show the inadequacies of other Philosophers, such as Aristotle and Socrates.
The Essay originated in 1671 when, as Locke mentions, a group of five or six friends met to discuss a point in philosophy. Difficulties arose and Locke proposed a prior inquiry: ‘to examine our own abilities, and see what objects our understanding were, or werenot, fitted to deal with’
John Locke is a very modest man. In the beginning of Epistle to the Reader he points out that this is not a “commendation” of his work, nor assume that because he enjoyed writing it, he too enjoys the finished product. He also comments further on that he is not ignorant because he has not extensively mentioned his good reputation. He also warns that the essay is purely made up of his thoughts, ideas and experiences, and that he did not publish the essay in order to be credited by scholars or other “masters of knowledge”. The Essay was published as Locke was persuaded that it would help others like himself. It is for this reason, Locke says, that he feels it necessary to make the information has “easy and intelligible” as possible...(Ha!)


After reading and scrutinizing this essay in order to write this paper, I have come to admire John Locke, as he has published this essay specifically to help others, and has aimed at truth and useful information. However, he also shows understanding that all people are different, and that his work will not please everyone, and those that are offended by his work can do what they want, because quite frankly, he doesn’t care, and would not waste his time having such a conversation with them.
As mentioned previously, Locke believes in Empiricism, that knowledge is gained from experience, and believed that the mind is the most important part in the soul, as it has the ability to acquire knowledge. “Every step the mind takes in its progress towards Knowledge makes some discovery”
Locke compares the mind to the eye, as only things we see can affect us, and please us, as the things we don’t see are unknown. Therefore the things we learn can please us, whereas we cannot regret knowledge we have not yet acquired, as it is unknown. Locke also points out that those of us who go beyond the norm to seek knowledge (as scientists, mathematicians etc did) will be rewarded for it, as he believes that knowledge causes feelings of pleasure. This is how he describes himself, as someone who has taken his thoughts and transferred them to paper. Perhaps originally only intended to be a series of note-taking has turned into one of Locke’s most influential works: An Essay of Human Understanding.
Locke also claims that those that follow other people’s thoughts are not following truth, suggesting that the search for knowledge is a personal experience.
As we have previously learnt, Descartes liked to be certain of things, without any doubt. Locke also follows this example, as he believes in everything he has mentioned in his works. He also states that he is liable to have made errors and mistakes, and that the book is not aimed at those who already have extensive knowledge of the subject, therefore may not be “new or instructive” as the text was originally written for Locke’s personal use for him and his friends. He supports this by commenting on how he would write parts of the book and then neglect it for long periods of time until he could be bothered to continue. It was not until his retirement that he finished the essay.
Locke says that writing in this way proved that some sections have too much information and others, too little. He at first assumed that his thoughts on the matter would only fill one sheet of paper, but his thoughts branched out and lead onto new discoveries. It would therefore have been possible to shorten the Essay, but Locke said he was now “too busy or too lazy”
Locke then goes on to comment on certain changes made in the different editions of his work, such as the Epitome of the Treatise, printed in 1688, was condemned by many people, without it even being read, as it denied innate ideas.

Defamation Cases

I have found a site with a list of court cases ranging from the 1800s to the millenium.

http://www.swarb.co.uk/liscindex.php

Click the link
Scroll Down to "Defamation"
Pick a time scale.

Check out the "Media" section too, but please note that not all of these cases will be relevant to the Journalism course.

Media Law: Qualified Privilege

This blog post will be shorter than many others, as I have found a link that explains Qualified Privilege better than I ever could:

http://www.yourrights.org.uk/yourrights/right-of-free-expression/defamation/qualified-privilege.html

The bullet points at the bottom are known as the 10-point test, and are very important in journalism, as any publication that follows every point can use qualified privilege as a defence.

History and Philosophy: The story so far

Reading: Bertrand Russel "A History of Human Philosophy"
John Locke: "Epistle To The Reader"

The history and philosophy lectures began by talking about the Italian Renaissance, which brought around the ideas of ancient philosophers such as Aristotle and Plato. During this time, Hobbes spoke about the state of nature and asked what the world was like before law and government, and concluded that society would disintegrate into chaos. At this time, nobody believed in government, but without a ruler the world would become so unbearable that the members of society would come together to elect a ruler. This was the beginning of the social contract, which was an agreement between the people and the ruler, allowing the ruler dictatorship.

Another important figure in our lectures is Descartes, known as the first "modern" philosopher. He believed that ancient philosophers such as Plato and Aristotle were very influential. Descartes wanted to change intellectual society, and believed that some things wern't true, and so tried to develop a way that everything he believed was true, without any doubt. He came to the conclusion that when everything was stripped down, all that was left was the mind, and thoughts. Hence his idea: "I think, therefore I am" (cognito irgo sum). He also believed that he was inferior to God, and that an inferior being cannot have any concept of a perfect superior being, unless God had implanted the idea in us.

Next we come onto the philosopher that this week's lecture was based on John Locke -------------------------------------> He is considered to be a hugely influential writer, and is known to be the first empiricist. This means he values experience over innate ideas, as opposed to Descartes. Locke was very influential on political events following the publishing of his books. At this time, there were 2 ideas dominating policitcal thinking:

• The Divine Right of Kings


• Social Contract

Catholic Kings believed in The Divine Right of Kings, as they believed they could do no wrong, as they had been chosen by God. However, others (including Hobbes) believed that the power should lie with the people, although agreed that the people needed a ruler, as without it, people's dominant passions will produce war.

Other philosophers had ideas on how to order society in a certain way. For example, More's Utopia.

The Social Contract was developed by Locke, so that the power rested with the people, but they give it up to a chosen leader.

Locke wrote "The Treatise of Government". The first treatise attacks the divine right of kings, on the basis that God gave Adam the power to rule. The second treatise focuses on the state of nature, and the idea that everyone enjoys natural freedom and equality, but obey natural laws. The laws of nature were moral laws which every man knew knew intuitively, i.e. the right to protect your property.

Locke also wrote "The Manual For Revolution", which was used in the American Constitution. Locke proposed a concept of government by consent and limited by law-it's powers mainly for the protection of property. He insisted that taxes could not be levied without the consent of the majority of society's consent. He believed that citizens could rebel if their Government ceased to respect the law-referring to the tyranny of James II. Therefore, Locke was suggesting that the right of revolution was one of the natural rights of man. Society gave the government power to help run society, but keep their human rights.

Locke believed our human understanding comes from our experience, which is worked on by our powers of reason to produce real knowledge. He was against "innate ideas". He thought that God had given mankind the ability to discover knowledge and morality so that innate ideas were not necessary.
Examples of innate ideas are:

• Plato's forms-the soul becomes aware of the forms and so had knowledge before birth.


• Descartes-immaterial soul with innate ideas imprinted by God.

However, Locke believed that before ideas are known, there is nothing in them in the mind but a capacity to know them. It seems that Locke has a lot of opposing ideas to Descartes, although they both believe that there is very little that we can know for certain.

According to Locke; when matters of faith go beyond reason and experience, individuals should be guided by private revelation which should never be imposed by the Church or State. Religion should be kept separate from the Government.

Locke saw his work as clearing the way for upcoming scientists such as Newton.
For those of you that are too bored to continue reading, check out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kOJnhRCzH90 for more information on Newton.

Newton achieved great things in his lifetime. Due to the plague, he left University for 2 years, where he discovered his law of gravity and 3 laws of motion, as well as inventing the infinitesimal calculus, and building the foundations of modern optics. After the plague, Newton returned to University, but did not tell anyone of his discoveries. He wrote a book in 1687, a mathematical demonstration of the Copernican hypothesis proposed by Kepler, which states that the Earth is not the centre of the Universe, but revolved around the Sun. For the first time, Newton convinced people that the world was ordered and knowable.

Newton said that natural philosophy can only demonstrate that a certain force operates on the world, not why. This idea was attacked by the Carthesians (followers of Descartes) as science should not make things up, it should admit ignorance when it does not have data. Newton also believed that the Universe demonstrated God's freedom and omnipotence.

Media Law: Defamation

The key to understanding the term "Libel" is the ability to tell the difference between fact and opinion, or comment.

As Chris Horrie put it: "Comment is bollocks" which basically means that people are permitted to have their own comments, but in the journalism world they should not be published, unless stated as comments. In journalism all facts must be checked and verified before publication, and journalists must not tell lies!

Another thing that journalists must never do is show malice. This is the ultimate sin. In libel cases, no defence will be accepted if malice can be proved.

Interesting fact: Paedophilia is the most defamatory claim. The reputation of a paedophile is worse than that of a murderer.

Going back to the difference between fact and comment, it is also important to understand that fact and truth are also different. For example, in Aristotles' time, there were 5 planets. This is a fact, however now we have discovered 8 planets (Pluto having been declassified). Therefore this fact was not the truth.

Reputation
Every adult has a reputation in the eyes of those that know him or her, or those that are in the public eye, and some people believe that their reputation is worth a lot of money. On the other hand, some people have "no reputation to lose", meaning that the person is already so badly thought of, nothing could make it any worse. Likewise, corpses have no reputation, and so cannot be libelled against.

If something you say may damage a persons' reputation, then you have "defamed" them. This can be explained as a non-criminal theft or destruction of reputation. If the defamation is in a non-permanent form, and is said to a third person, then this is slander, however, is a person is defamed in a "permanent" form, and if they are clearly identified, then they have been libelled.

Journalists in the UK are subject to the strictest libel laws in the world. This can be dangerous to international journalists, due to the developing area of libel on the internet. Online publication counts as a permanent form, and so journalists in other countries, although may be safe under that countrys' libel laws, can be sued over online publication constituting libel in the UK.
However, UK libel law is weighted more to the complainant than any other country, and so if an article is safe in London, it is probably safe throughout the world.

It is not only journalists who can be sued for libel over a story. The person who has been libelled against may sue the publisher/broadcaster, the author/writer, the distributor, and anyone else responsible for spreading the defamation.

Libel Summary

Libel requires:

1. Defamation
2. Publication
3. Identification

1. Defamation

Libel is the only type of civil case that is tried with a jury, who decides if the content was defamatory. However, juries are becoming less important as more people are settling out of court. The jury in these cases have to follow certain guidelines that a statement is defamatory if it merely tends to lower a person's reputation in any of the following ways:

• Exposes them to hatred, ridicule or contempt
• Causes them to be shunned or avoided
• Discredits them in their trade
• Generally lowers them in the eyes of society

The danger lies for journalists, in publishing something that sounds innocent and fair, but falls foul of the defamatory definition.

"Accidental libel" can be used as a defence, if a correction is made promptly, but Civil Law is all about measuring the damage done and calculating compensation.

Important Note: Defamation Is Not The Same As Lies!

Journalism is a form of writing with consequences.

Falsehood is not necessarily defamatory; and defamatory remarks are often true. However, just because something is true does not mean it is not defamatory. However true defamatory remarks make a good defence and gives justification for saying it.

2. Publication

As mentioned above, libel laws differ between cultures, however online publication may break libel laws in a different country to the one in which it was written or published.

3. Identification

There are a few billion people in the world, and many of them will share similar characteristics. For example, a defamatory article about John Smith is liable to be sued by every John Smith alive. This is the same for small groups and organisations. "A bent cop in Banbury Police Force" is defamatory to every officer working for that force, as they will all be suspected of being the subject of the article, thus damaging their reputation.

Libel Defences

Journalists defame people fairly frequently just by reporting every day events, although many types of libel are safe because there are strong defences available.

1. Justification: If the statement can be proven to be true, the action is justified.
2. Fair Comment: Meaning "honest opinion". The journalist can publish hurtful things, as long as it is clear that it is comment, not fact.

Journalists must constantly think about what is fact and what is comment.

Privilege

Privilege is a special protection against an action for defamation given to judges, lawyers, witnesses in court and MPs. They have "absolute privilege" which means they can say whatever they like without danger of prosecution.

The following is taken from top lawyer David Price's website:

"The most common form of qualified privilege is where the defendant has a legal, moral or social duty or interest in making the publication and the recipients have a corresponding duty or interest in reading or hearing them. More recently the courts have expanded the concepts of duty and interest to protect the media when they publish material on a matter of public interest which they reasonably believe to be true, but turns out to be false.
The defences of fair comment and qualified privilege can be defeated if the claimant can prove malice on the part of the publisher. Malice will be constituted if the publisher knew the words were false or was reckless as to their truth or falsity"

Moral of the Story: Don't tell lies! Always verify facts before publishing them or you WILL be sued!

Long Awaited Blog Update

Unfortunately I had no internet connection last week and so was unable to update my blog online. However I did prepare it in a Word document, which I shall paste below:

After a week on the course, I have begun to ask questions as to what exactly makes up the Journalism course. Media and Journalism fit together fairly well, as they work within the same industry. But Media Law surely should only be relevant to those journalists whom report on court cases. However, I have learnt in the introduction to Media Law that all Journalists must have a basic knowledge of law, as it can be very easy for a journalist to commit contempt of court. Something as simple as taking a mobile phone into a court case can land you a maximum 30 year prison sentence.
Also, Journalism History, and Philosophy. These also interlink in some ways, as it is important to know how the industry started and important events which have lead up to this present day. I found it more perplexing however, to figure out exactly why we have lectures on Philosophy, as there is no obvious connection to me. I found the answer to this through a conversation with another member of the course: Andrew Giddings, who explained it to me like so: “Philosophy isn’t about finding the answers, it’s about asking the questions, which is just what Journalists do.”
Back to Law: For a guilty verdict to be given, the offence must be proven in court “beyond reasonable doubt”. It is up to the prosecution to prove someone of being guilty, rather than the accused having to prove that they are innocent. Not all people who are taking into the police station for questioning have been arrested, however some people whom voluntarily attend may be detained or arrested depending on their responses to police interrogation. Journalists need to check whether the suspect has been arrested or is voluntarily helping with the investigation. If a suspect is under arrest, the case automatically becomes active under the Contempt of Court Act 1981, which affects what can be published about it.
By law, people who have been detained for further questioning can only be held for 24 hours. If no charge is given after this time the person must be released. An extra 12 hours can be authorised by higher ranked officers for indictable offences. After this time, if the police want to hold a person for longer, they must apply to the courts for permission. Reporters cannot attend hearing applications for further detention.
The Terrorism Act 2006 allows those suspected of terrorism offences to be held for up to 28 days.
A government department called the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) are responsible for most prosecutions. The CPS decides the charge in all major cases which involve police investigations. The charge is an accusatory statement giving details of the crime committed I.e. rape, murder.
Police Bail is granted when a suspect is not charged, but police want more time to continue investigations.
Once a person has been charged all questioning must stop and they must be brought before a magistrates court the following day. The decision to prosecute can be made quickly or can take weeks or months if more evidence is needed. The next stage in the case is for the prosecution to decide the charge, or for them to lay down the information before a magistrate, who will then issue a summons, regardless of any evidence.
A summons is a formal document, which requires (or summons) the receiver to attend court on a specified date to respond to the allegations. Therefore, this is another way of starting a prosecution. In court, the summons becomes the charge.
If evidence is presented to a magistrate which proves a person guilty of an indictable offence or other offence punishable by imprisonment then an arrest warrant may be issued. This document gives any police officer the power to arrest this person anywhere in the UK for them to be brought to the magistrates court. This is how prosecution usually begins for suspects who are “on the run”.
If a media organisation discovers that someone is under investigation, they must not identify the person, as they could then be sued for libel if the investigation does not lead to criminal prosecution. Publishing details about a person under investigation may create the impression that they are guilty, which is defamatory. The name of a person under investigation may only be published if the CPS or local council officially release the details for publication.
In some instances, the media are willing to run the risk of libel, if the person is unlikely to take legal action against them. For examples, some celebrities would not sue for libel as they don’t want to alienate the media.
Also, if the media fail to report or charge accurately (I.e. reporting burglary instead of theft) then it can be successfully sued for libel.
The police follow guidelines which state that people under investigation should not be named but may be described, as long as the description does not make them identifiable.
Some crimes stories come with ethical considerations. For example, victims of rape or other sexual offences may not want to be identified.
There are 3 main categories of criminal offence:
Indictable (e.g. murder). These are punishable by a minimum of 5 years imprisonment, and can only be dealt with by Crown court, as the judges have more power.
Either-way offences can be dealt with by magistrates court or at Crown court, depending on magistrates decision and defendants choice. An example of an either way offence is burglary. These may also be referred to as indictable.
Summary offences are minor offences which are fairly straightforward to deal with and so are generally dealt with in magistrates court. Suspects of summary offences do not have the right of Crown court trial.
There are 2 elements to most crimes:
An act which is potentially criminal (actus reus) and
A guilty mind (menz rea), which means the crime was commited with guilty intent, for example, pre-planned.
For some offences, prosecutors do not need to prove guilty intent. These are said to be of “strict liability” and are offences which may put society at risk. For example, a speeding motorist may not have realised how fast he was going, and so had no guilty intent, but will be prosecuted for a strict liability offence.
The majority of court cases are dealt with by magistrates.
There are 2 types of magistrate:
Lay judges, which are mostly part-time volunteers, and
district judges-who are professional, paid judges appointed after at least 7 years as a solicitor or barrister.
However, magistrates have limited powers to sentence in the event of a conviction, and so all indictable offences are referred to Crown court. Magistrates can also refuse to try an either-way charge, or if the defendant chooses trial by jury, then the case will be considered in a committal hearing, and if there is sufficient evidence, the case will be referred to Crown court. If a defendant admits committing an either-way offence, magistrates may sentence him/her or may commit them to Crown court for a higher sentencing. If the case is referred to Crown court, the defendant may be granted bail, or may have to stay in police custody. Reporting restrictions apply to preliminary hearings in the magistrates court if the case has potential for a jury trial. Most cases in the magistrates court can be reported fully, however there are restrictions on what can be reported about a Crown court case, which cease to operate when the trial has finished.
In Crown court, the jury may reach a verdict unanimously, or by a majority vote (10-1). Reporters should not report that an acquittal was by a majority decision.

History and Context of Journalism...or Philosophy?

Reading: Bertrand Russells' "A History Of Western Philosophy",

One thing I definitely learnt during this lecture is that I do NOT like Philosophy.
The reading and lecture both posed the question: just what does this have to do with Journalism? I am sure that the answer will become clear within the next few weeks, as I figured that it wouldn't be part of the course if it was not relevant to Journalism.

I really did not understand much of the lecture, or the reading, and so am currently researching other sources for simplified versions of the theorys discussed.
Many thanks to Charlotte Clarke for her simplified version of Plato's theory.
http://charlotteaclarke.blogspot.com/

One part I did find interesting about the reading was Chapter 4: More's Utopia.
Another interesting fact is that Francis Bacon died from a chill caught from stuffing a chicken with snow.
I am hoping that further reading and future lectures may help me understand this subject slightly better.

Today's News

Although female stereotypes say I should not be interested in football or sports, I was quite interested to read today that Arsenal's Nicklas Bendtner wrote off his £160k Aston Martin on the way to the training ground on Sunday morning. Fortunately, the football star was uninjured, however will not be playing in the Champions League game against Olympiakos. The police are not enquiring into the accident, as a witness has reported that Bendtner was not speeding or driving in a dangerous manner. It is believed a brief lapse of concentration caused the car to career off the A1 on Sunday morning.
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/2659124/Arsenal-ace-Nicklas-Bendtner-escapes-car-crash.html

Other shocking news is that a 14 year old girl has died shortly after recieving a vaccine against cervical cancer. Other girls who had the same vaccine suffered nausea and other minor symptoms. The vaccination programme has been paused while tests are carried out.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/8279866.stm

Many people have already heard the Pilkington story: A mother drove her disabled daughter to a lay-by and set fire to the car with them both inside after suffering torrents of abuse from local yobs in 2007. An inquest yesterday found that the police and council actions contributed to their deaths. An investigation has been launched, however Chief Constable Baggot, the officer in charge of the unit that failed to protect Ms Pilkington, has failed to apologise for their deaths.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article6853851.ece

Introduction to Media Law

Reading: McNae's Essential Law For Journalists (Chapter 1)

The main theme for today's lecture was an introduction to the different types of courts in the court hierarchy (shown below).

This blog post will review notes from this morning's lecture and provide information on the different types of cases each court deals with.

The House of Lords, which is soon to be known as the Supreme Court, is the highest court in the UK. It also acts as the final stage of appeal for courts lower in the hierarchy. The Prime Minister elects special "Law Lords", whom are appointed for life to carry out the legal functions within the court.

The High Court is also an important part of the hierarchy, as High Court judges are responsible for ensuring justice is served in all local courts in the country.
If lower courts cannot reach a decision they will refer a case up the hierarchy.
The European Court of Justice can overturn any decision made by both the High Court and the House of Lords.


The High Court is made up of 3 divisions:

Queens Bench: This division deals with cases such as breaches of contracts, compensation claims, and certain libel cases.

Family Division: As the name suggests, this division deals with divorce cases, and child welfare matters which lower courts have been unable to settle.

Chancery Division: This division is more complex than the others, as it deals with cases such as issues with property, bankruptcy, and disputes between landlords and tenants.

The Crown Court is the main criminal court and is where most cases end, unless referred for appeal. This court features full-time professional judges and the case is presented before a jury. Juries can only deliver a guilty verdict if they are persuaded "beyond reasonable doubt" that a person is guilty. Any other reason for a guilty verdict can be interpreted as contempt of court and carries a maximum penalty of 30 years imprisonment. This is of a higher standard than civil courts, who base their verdicts on the "balance of probabilities".

The Magistrates Court is where all criminal cases begin. 3 Magistrates will deal with the case, deliver a sentence or transfer the case to Crown Court. Most cases in the Magistrates Court will be started by the police, however the more serious cases are dealth with by the Crown Prosecution Service.

The County Court deal with civil matters similar to the High Court, but at a lower level. Civil matters may be settled in the County Court, or more serious cases will be referred to the High Court.

Tribunals are at the bottom of the hierarchy and deal with appeals on decisions regarding immigration, child support, tax, pensions etc.

House of Lords: http://atlasshrugs2000.typepad.com/.a/6a00d8341c60bf53ef0111686031d2970c-800wi

High Court:
http://www.peo.gov.au/images/library/0018.jpg

Crown Court: http://www.bushywood.com/sussex/sussex_images/lewes_crown_court_interior_woodwork.jpg

Magistrates Court: http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/1705000/images/_1706544_bowstreet_300.jpg

County Court: http://www.polksheriff.org/InsidePCSO/Detention/PublishingImages/CTHOUSE%20003.jpg

Recent News: Hit-and-Run driver Hannah Saaf has pleaded guilty at Bristol Crown Court after knocking down and killing 11 year old Sam Riddal before fleeing the scene. Saaf was found 9 days after the crash sleeping rough in a tractor shed. This case went to Bristol Crown Court, and because the defendant pleaded guilty, the case did not need to be referred to the higher courts. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/bristol/8280070.stm)

Other References:

McNae's Essential Law for Journalists
http://journalism.winchester.ac.uk/?page=223