Defamation is also known as slander (when referring to a spoken statement) or libel (for written, broadcast or otherwise published words) is the technical term referring to the communication of a statement that makes a claim which is either explicitly stated or implied to be factual, that may give an individual, business, product, group, government, or nation a negative image.
It is usually a requirement that this claim is false and that the publication is communicated to someone other than the person defamed (the claimant).
In a libel case the person or party that has made the libelous comment must prove their accusation is true as opposed to the accused individual proving their innocence. In other words the person or parties who have made the libelous comment or libelous comments are deemed guilty until proven innocent.
As a result of this, the media have to be very cautious in both the content and written expression (phrasing) of their publications in order to ensure they don’t publish anything they could potentially be sued for in the future.
However, I believe the combination of libelous comments being a fundamental part of sensationalist journalism and the fact that libel cases are often costly, time consuming and frustrating, resulting in them often being dropped means libelous comments will undeniably continue in the media as potential profit made from the publication of libel comments most likely outweighs the potential loss of money by a court case which may eventually be dropped.
I also believe libel laws should be reformed so that they incorporate some kind of classification system which clearly defines what is classified as stating a fact and what is classified as expressing an opinion. I feel this is a key step in identifying exactly where our freedom of speech lies.
Contempt of court
Contempt of court is a court order which, in the context of a court trial or hearing, declares a person or organization to have disobeyed or been disrespectful of the court's authority. Often referred to simply as "contempt", such as a person "held in contempt", it is the judge's strongest power to impose sanctions for acts which disrupt the court's normal process.
A finding of contempt of court may result from a failure to obey a lawful order of a court, showing disrespect for the judge, disruption of the proceedings through poor behavior, or publication of material deemed likely to jeopardize a fair trial.
This act has many implications for the media as they have restricted in the amount detail (involving names of individuals and expressing early assumptions about the case which may be biased) they can publish about court proceedings in case they ultimately jeopardize the chances of a fair trial.
Race Relations Act 1976
The Race Relations Act 1976 was established by the Parliament of the United Kingdom to prevent discrimination on the grounds of race.
Items that are covered include discrimination on the grounds of race, nationality, ethnic and national origin in the fields of employment, the provision of goods and services, education and public functions.
The Act incorporates the earlier Race Relations Act 1965 and Race Relations Act 1968 and was later amended by the Race Relations Amendment Act 2000, notably including a statutory duty on public bodies to promote race equality, and to demonstrate that procedures to prevent race discrimination are effective.
This act means the media must be unbiased in their reporting in that they must not discriminate against people of other nationalities or ethnicities- they must be fair and be objective in the content they produce.
Data Protection Act 1998
The Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA) is a United Kingdom Act of Parliament which defines UK law on the processing of data on identifiable living people. It is the main piece of legislation that governs the protection of personal data in the UK. Although the Act itself does not mention privacy, it was enacted to bring UK law into line with the European Directive of 1995 which required Member States to protect people's fundamental rights and freedoms and in particular their right to privacy with respect to the processing of personal data. In practice it provides a way for individuals to control information about themselves. Most of the Act does not apply to domestic use, for example keeping a personal address book. Anyone holding personal data for other purposes is legally obliged to comply with this Act, subject to some exemptions.
The Act defines eight data protection principles which are surmised below:
- Data may only be used for the specific purposes for which it was collected.
Data must not be disclosed to other parties without the consent of the individual whom it is about, unless there is legislation or other overriding legitimate reason to share the information (for example, the prevention or detection of crime). It is an offence for Other Parties to obtain this personal data without authorization.
Individuals have a right of access to the information held about them, subject to certain exceptions (for example, information held for the prevention or detection of crime).
Personal information may be kept for no longer than is necessary and must be kept up to date.
Personal information may not be sent outside the European Economic Area unless the individual whom it is about has consented or adequate protection is in place, for example by the use of a prescribed form of contract to govern the transmission of the data.
Subject to some exceptions for organizations that only do very simple processing, and for domestic use, all entities that process personal information must register with the Information Commissioner's Office.
Entities holding personal information are required to have adequate security measures in place. Those include technical measures (such as firewalls) and organizational measures (such as staff training).
- Subjects have the right to have factually incorrect information corrected (note: this does not extend to matters of opinion).
The Data protection Act means that the media cannot employ deception when obtaining private information, must not disclose private information without consent, must protect the security of private information and allow individuals to amend any incorrect information (note: this does not extend to matters of opinion).
The “Data protection Act” means that the media cannot employ deception when obtaining private information, must not disclose private information without consent, must protect the security of private information and allow individuals to amend any incorrect information.
Human Rights Act 1998
The Human Rights Act 1998 is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom which received Royal Assent on 9 November 1998, and mostly came into force on 2 October 2000. Its aim is to "give further effect" in UK law to the rights contained in the European Convention on Human Rights.
Some of the aspects that “The Human Rights Act” is concerned include:
· respecting rights
· life
· fair trial
· privacy
· expression
· discrimination
This act bears implications for the media as they have to comply with the rules of the act meaning none of their activities can indirectly or directly infringe privacy, discriminate against others, endanger lives or jeopardize a trial. On the other hand the press could argue that it is their human right to express themselves.
Some notable examples include:
Campbell v. MGN Ltd [2002] EWCA Civ 1373, Naomi Campbell and Sara Cox both sought to assert their right to privacy under the Act. Both cases were successful for the complainant (Campbell's on the second attempt; Cox's attempt was not judicially decided but an out of court settlement was reached before the issue could be tested in court) and an amendment to British law to incorporate a provision for privacy is expected to be introduced.
Mosley v News Group Newspapers Limited (2008), Max Mosley challenged an invasion of his private life after the News of the World exposed his involvement in a Sado-masochistic sex act. The case resulted in Mr Mosley being awarded £60,000 in damages.
Official Secrets Act
The “Official Secrets Act” provides for the protection of state secrets and official information, mainly related to national security.
This act prohibits the media publishing sensitive information that may jeopardize national security such as documents relating to the state’s defenses.
Sexual Offences Act 2003
The Sexual Offences Act 2003 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland that was passed in 2003 and became law on 1 May 2004.
This act details all the different sexual offences relating to rape and obscene exposure of children meaning the media cannot publish or broadcast any content of a sexual nature which is prohibited by the act.
