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which basically means that people are permitted to have their own comments, but in the journalism world they should not be published, unless stated as comments.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:
- Defamation
- Publication
- 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.
- Justification: If the statement can be proven to be true, the action is justified.
- 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!
Good notes, but basically just a reort of what was said in the lecture and my notes, without adding that much. Good though, as ever.
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