Media Law & Ethics - Lecture 9, 12/03/14

Media Law Revision session;

Before starting work as a journalist you must have a firm understanding of the key parts of media law which you must know to operate safely.

You do not want to risk your own career or bring costly litigation upon your employer.

The legal framework in the UK;

Hierarchy of courts, the structure represents a pyramid with the Supreme Court at the top. Underneath the Supreme Court is the court of appeal that deals with both criminal and civil law.

•  Split into two divisions; criminal and civil.
• Civil division focuses on family law and contractual disputes between people and organisations. Heard in a County Court. Often judged on the balance of probabilities.
• Criminal division focuses on state offences: murder, burglary, fraud. Often judged on the court standard beyond reasonable doubt.
• Criminal law and civil law – what’s the difference?
• Need to know where the cases are going to be heard therefore you need to know what all the courts are…

Who brings the decisions?

• The CPS, crown prosecution service is headed by the DPP, director of public prosecutions who is Alison Saunders. The David Lee Travis trial had to go back to the DPP and Alison Saunders had to personally decide what to do; she opted to press ahead with the trial. She is a regarded as a high profile media figure as she has to to explain why or why not she is taking the person to trial.
• Ministry of Justice – Chris Grayling is overseeing administration of the courts.
• The other law officer in government; The Attorney General. Their function is to make sure the ministers of government are legally correct when acting. The Attorney General is always an MP, at the moment it is Dominic Grieve. 

Sources of law; 

• The statute law which originates from parliament
• Judicial law also known as case law
• Common law dating from the middle ages
• The body of European law; which particularly focuses on commercial matters about how trade should be carried out in Europe and the UK.

Potential questions;

·         What’s the highest court in the UK? Where does it sit? How many justices?

The Supreme Court located in central London, Middlesex Guild Hall on one side of Parliament Square. There are twelve justices in total.

·         Three functions of the Crown court?

- Indictable offences are tried at a Crown Court; these are serious crimes where sentencing is longer than five years.

- Hear appeals from Magistrates courts

- Sentencing

Reporting Crime and the Courts;

Key concepts to understand are PREJUDICE and CONTEMPT.

These are the danger areas, why is this?

Prejudice – where the publication of certain information will make it difficult for an accused person to be treated fairly at trial i.e. the jury already knows background facts about the defendant.

Contempt – where information is published in breach of the rules on crime or court reporting, this can result in a high risk of prejudicing legal proceedings.

When does a case become legally active?

• When the person is charged
• When an arrest warrant has been issued
• When an arrest has been made
• When a summons has been issued

As a journalist reporting on a case you must construct a plan B if the charges or an arrest is imminent. You must prepare a new script that does not include any details that could potentially damage the legalities of the case. Discuss with your lawyer what to keep and what to take out in your script/report as you always need to be one step ahead.

Stage 1 - The crime is reported, the police begin appeal for witnesses

Stage 2 - Police make an arrest, issue a warrant or say a person is ‘helping with inquiries’ this is when the case becomes legally active. There is a risk of prejudice so take advice before publishing all facts, especially any descriptions of subjects.

Stage 3 – Police lay charges meaning a trial is a definite prospect. You can only report the facts which you will be certain will be uncontested. Other aspects such as community ‘colour’ angles can be reported e.g. shock, distress, laying flowers.

Stage 4 – Magistrates court hearing, this is restricted to seven points only;

-          Name of defendants, ages, addresses, occupations

-          Charges faced or a close summary

-          Name of court and magistrates names

-          Names of solicitors or barristers present

-          Date and place to where case is adjourned too

-          Bail (only whether granted or not) and bail arrangements

-          Whether legal aid was granted

Types of offence;

·         Indictable

·         Either way

·         Summary

Magistrate’s courts; potential questions

What is the maximum sentence a magistrate can impose?

·  Six months

What is meant by a conditional discharge?

·         If you walk free today then you cannot commit another crime again. This differs from a suspended sentence as this is linked to a timeframe. It is a way of keeping people out of jail. Judges are encouraged to use suspended sentences due to the prisons already being full.

What is the purpose of a section 49 order?

·         Giving anonymity to under 18s in youth courts.

What is the purpose of a section 39 order?

·         Giving anonymity to under 18s in adult courts.

What do we mean by jigsaw identification?

· The innocent reader on the bus may be able to deduce who the publications/press is talking about when reporting on a trial.

Crown courts;

• If the jury is not present proceedings should not be reported.
• Reporters in covering court proceedings enjoy ABSOLUTE PRIVILEGE – ‘a complete defence against any action for defamation’
• But it depends on the report being ‘fair, accurate and contemporaneous (fast)’
• Defamatory shouts from the public gallery are not privileged.

The protection we have as a journalist when reporting from court is absolute privilege, if you are not reporting accurately you will lose your absolute privilege.

·         What is required of your court report for it to attract absolute privilege?

·         In this context explain what is meant by ‘fair’?

·         During a murder trial a family member shouts at the defendant from the public gallery. “You lying bastard – you killed our boy” Is that safe to report?

Libel and defamation;

Libel is a civil wrong resulting from a published defamatory statement which identifies a person or company. A defamatory statement can cause individuals or an organisation to be;

• Lowered in the mind of right thinking members of the public
• Causes them to be shunned or avoided
• Damages their reputation, disparages them in their business, trade, office or profession.
• Exposes someone to hatred, ridicule or contempt

Publication + Identification + Defamation = Libel

This is a low standard of proof.

Beware inference (secondary meaning) and innuendo (possible defamatory suggestion). 

In broadcast be careful of picture libel, careless use of inaccurate shots that are out of context with your voice over or script, for example if you are talking about fraud and have shots of shop signs and businesses that have nothing to do with the report can cause huge libel problems.

The New Act of Libel;

The defences of libel; It has to be proved that it has caused you or your company serious harm, this is one of the new thresholds as it has to have affected your lifestyle either through loss of trade or income.

Truth or at least substantial truth.

Honest opinion – The statement must be clearly an honestly-held opinion based upon a fact or facts which existed at the time of the statement, it no longer had to be a matter of public interest but as before there must be no malice.

Publication on matters of public interest;

This new section enshrines principles behind previous judgements. If material is published because 'it is reasonably believed' to be in the public's interest i.e. of value for the public to know. 

Website defence and peer reviewed journals. 

Qualified privilege – The defamation took place in a situation where QP applies e.g. council meeting, police statement, press conference.

Potential questions;

How would you define libel?

How do we know when a statement is defamatory? (four tests used by judges)

What particular danger is there of libel for TV journalists?

What the three major libel defences?

Something regarding the McAlpine affair

Qualified privilege;

• Privilege offers day to day protection for many routine journalistic activities. E.g. reporting public meetings, council hearings, press conferences and police statements.
•  Allows journalists to write or broadcast material which may be defamatory or untrue. We have legal protection from being sued as long as reports are ‘fair, accurate and with malice’ (intent to harm) and are a matter of public concern.
• Remember there are two levels of Qualified Privilege – with and without explanation and contradiction. 
• An example of qualified privilege without explanation or contradiction would be proceedings of a legislature anywhere in the world.
• Comments outside the public meeting do not attract qualified privilege. 

Copy right;

The exclusive legal right, given to an originator or an assignee to print, publish, perform, film or record literary, artistic or musical material, and to authorize others to do the same.

Purpose is to protect intellectual property - the product of skill, creativity and labour of time. Journalism as a business could not exist without it but undeveloped ideas, brief slogans or catchphrases are not protected. 

Ignorance is no defence. 

'Fair dealings' allows other media outlets to lift journalistic material but 

• Work cannot be passed off as your own
• Usage must be fair - not greater than originator
• Material must be in the public interest

You cannot fair deal photographs or in normal circumstances TV news pictures. You must always attribute to the creator. 

Internet material is still subject to copyright. 

Possible questions;

·         What is the purpose of copyright law?

·         You use a photo off of the internet, is it free of copyright?

·         Why is the principle of fair dealing important and what are its limitations?

Confidentiality; breach of confidence

Law of confidence safeguards information obtained in confidential circumstances e.g. between private individuals or between a company and its employees. 

For journalists there are three areas of concern;

1. Revealing state secrets or 'official' secrets
2. Revealing commercial secrets
3. Revealing facts about a person they would have expected to remain private

The Official Secrets Act protects state secrets (military or intelligence matters) Beware of inadvertent breach by publishing photos of sensitive military installations. Breaches are a criminal offence.

But the act is rarely used as juries have been reluctant to convict 'whistleblowers' (Clive Ponting) or others who can be 'victims' of the state. 

Commercial confidentiality is normally protected by the contract of employment. Staff will not do things detrimental to their employers interests e.g. reveal finance information helpful to competitors. 

But this interest must always be balanced against the public interest which might dictate that publication is desirable. E.g. the 1985 case which ruled that it was in the public's interest to reveal that a police breathalyser did not work. 

Personal confidences or privacy; now also protected under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights. 

Elements of breach of confidence; (page 297)

•  Information must have ‘quality of confidence i.e. not trivial
• Circumstances must impose an ‘obligation of confidence’
• Unauthorised use of the information must cause ‘detriment’
• Personal confidences or privacy – now also protected under Article 8 of European Convention on Human Rights. (Privacy page 307)

Breach of confidence and the journalist’s dilemma;

Journalists must decide when newsworthy confidential information is uncovered to either;

• Risk an injunction (legal stop) by seeking a response to an allegation OR
• Publish material and take the risk of legal action for breach of confidentiality.

Case studies;

• Max Mosley VS The News of the World. In 2008 the paper printed the story of Mosley's sado – masochistic orgy with five women saying it had a Nazi theme. But the high court ruled that there was no public interest in revealing the activities so Mosely had a right of privacy and damages were awarded. 
• Naomi Campbell VS The Mirror Group. In 2004 The Mirror had published photographs of Campbell leaving a meeting of Narcotics Anonymous and reported her therapy for drug addiction. The House of Lords ruled there was a breach of confidence and that she could have expected privacy. 

The PCC, OFCOM and BBC Guidelines;

• Covers journalistic behaviour in getting a story, what is justified and what is not. E.g. secret recording. 
• Under OFCOM rules there is an absolute requirement for accuracy and impartiality. 
• Press Complaints Commission discredited post-Levenson, the next move is unclear. 
• BBC Editorial Guidelines are also designed as a system of self regulation. 
• OCOM code has STATUTORY power. OFCOM can impose large fines and remove broadcast licenses. 
• Examples include the fines on BBC for the Sachsgate scandal, £400,000 for fake phone ins and ITV's Ant and Dec who were fined £5.6 million for abusing phone-in votes to make money. 

Potential questions;

·         What bodies are responsible for regulating the professional conduct of journalism?

·         Which body has the most power and why?

·         Define impartiality.

Reporting elections;

Remember journalistic obligations for accuracy and impartiality is greater than ever at election time - our reporting will assist the democratic process to allow voters to make choices.

Key danger areas for journalists;

• False statements about candidates
• Maintaining impartiality
•  Reporting election polls

• Remember broadcasters are obliged to maintain strict impartiality. This is done by assessing coverage daily and over several days. Also by keeping a log.
• Major party candidates and minor party or fringe candidates do not have to be treated equally. 
• It is an offence to refer to exit polls (about how real votes were cast) until close of polling. 
• No coverage of political issues or argument on polling day itself. 

     Possible questions;

Why is accuracy and impartiality especially important at election times?

What are the danger areas for journalists during campaign reporting?

Must all candidates standing in a constituency be covered equally?

On polling day when can we start reposting exit polls? 

On polling day a candidate makes a final plea to voters - can we report this?

      

     The public interest - defining it;

• Where it is to the advantage of the public to know certain information: e.g. that there has been a case of bird or swine flu in Winchester. Shopkeepers in the town will not like the loss of visitors, but it is clearly in the interest of residents to know so they may take precautions.

Media Law & Ethics - Lecture 8, 05/03/14

Reporting elections;

 “The law is the representation of the people”

Why as a journalist is it so important to report elections?

It is our duty and responsibility to raise awareness for the public. Voters get their information from journalists writing and broadcasting about the election. The electoral process runs on journalism as the build-up to the election is hyped up by the press.

The hard truths of reporting on an election;

• Citizens base choices on your reporting
• Accuracy and impartiality even more vital
• Politicians love to shoot the messenger
• Campaign language is often ‘heated'

To keep debate down you throttle the press, this is more common in less economically developed countries where dictation is rife, however in Britain and other more economically developed countries it is the opposite. The subject of elections is becoming more relevant as the European election comments later this year on the 22nd May.

There are certain rules on how to report an election; these rules are in place to differentiate between broadcasters and print journalists. OFCOM and the BBC guidelines are to be adhered to by broadcasters which state that as a broadcaster you cannot be biased, you must be impartial. Newspapers however can be one sided and are free to write partially.

Cases;

Former labour minister and MP for Oldham East Phil Woolas, was found to have breached the representation of the People Act 1983 in the course of the 2010 election. He breached the primary rule as he made false statements about other candidates, implicating that the lib-dem party candidate had ‘wooed’ Islamic extremists. He was ejected from his seat in parliament following this.

Miranda Grell was accused of slandering gay lib-dem candidate Barry Smith calling him a ‘paedophile’ and stating that he ‘had sex with teenage boys’ whilst she was campaigning for the Leyton Ward in Waltham Forest.

Voting;

When the campaigning takes place, the public are encouraged to vote for the party they wish to win, this is done through poll votes, however not all polls are the same. Some are extremely reliable but others are distinctly dodgy, they can be subject to margins of error and elements such as where the poll took place and how big the poll actually is which can affect the overall votes.

Opinion polls;

When the campaigning takes place the opinion polls will begin. You will conduct your own opinion poll however it is important to remember that;

• Not all opinion polls are reliable
• In your report you will have to frame an angle such as ‘you were just getting a sense of what people were thinking/feeling about the election’
• The sample needs to be fair; this includes age, range, position etc.
• Need to be able to give context

Exit polls;

An election exit poll is a poll of voters taken immediately after they have exited the polling stations. Unlike an opinion poll, which asks whom the voters plan to vote for or some other similar formulation, an exit poll asks whom the voter actually voted for. You cannot broadcast the exit poll until the voting for the election has finished.

Coverage;

As a journalist covering the campaigns you will be able to create your complete package report each night by reporting on what the parties have been doing during the day. The time devoted to the major party will need to be the same as the minor parties in order for you to come across as impartial in your report. It is essential to keep an accurate log of party coverage so you know that you have given each party the same amount of time.

Other kinds of reporting could be a discussion show which would consist of a panel of three to four guests to create a debate like report. It is important to question whether the panel will be compliant to what the editorial directors will want. Making up the panel needs to be well constructed and thought out. It needs to be demographically varied so support is shown across all parties in order to get a credible and fair debate.

As a journalist, you will be reporting on the elections and it is important to cover the different aspects, these will include the debates, leaders visiting, campaigns, polls, and profiles of the different campaigners that are situated in the safe seats. You will want to reflect the reality of the election so if you know a particular party isn’t going to do that well you do not have to feel obliged to give them the same amount of coverage time as the other parties, you can just briefly acknowledge them on the report. Due to editorial reasons such as tactical voting you may want to give that party accused more coverage time as it is in the public’s interest.  

Summary;

• Get to know election procedures
•  Learn to judge the differences between election ‘banter’ and ‘false statements’
• Remain impartial.

Media Law & Ethics - Lecture 6, 26/02/14

Confidentiality; 

A breach of confidence is where someone on the inside has leaked confidential information to the press or other sources.

Papers have leaked material in the past; there is the example of an old case where the jury refused to convict as they had sympathy with the leaker and believed it was beneficial in the public’s interest.

There is a more recent case that is still circulating the news that breaches confidentiality laws; this being the Edward Snowdon and wiki leaks case. Edward Snowdon, a former employee of the CIA who specialised in computers came to international attention when he disclosed a vast number of classified documents  to several media outlets. These documents contained information about operational details of a global surveillance apparatus that was ran by the NSA (National Security Agency).

Qualified privilege; qualified is determined by circumstance and place.

As long as reports are;

• Fast
• Accurate
• Fair
• Without malice
• In the public’s interest
• No privilege outside of main proceedings

A defence is available when it is considered that the fact should be freely known in the public’s interest. The public is considered more important than any potential defamatory risk.

BBC News ‘Credit Suisse ‘aided’ US tax evaders’ there is a risk of their reputation being damaged as it is a defamatory statement however this headline can be printed because of qualified privilege.

Another occasion where qualified privilege may arise would be in an annual general meeting of shareholders where the shareholders may defame the company but as a journalist we have qualified privilege to report this.

There has been some tidying up of the law in this area which has helped journalists as it has regularised some of the areas that were particularly grey, especially during press conferences of high profile cases where a statement may have been made that is defamatory, as a journalist we need to known whether or not we can we quote this statement. 

Absolute privilege; absolute is determined by anything covered in court

Anything to do with absolute privilege refers to what we get when covering cases in court. It must be accurate, fair and competent.

There are different levels of qualified privilege that split into two; ‘without explanation and contraction’

• Public proceedings in a legislature anywhere in the world
• Public proceedings in a court anywhere in the world
• Public inquiries
• International organisation or conference

Part two privilege;

Subject to explanation and contradiction which are often found in;

• Public meetings
• Local councils and committees
• Tribunals, commissions, inquiries
• General meetings of UK public companies
• Company documents or extracts

Pressers;

• Pressers are public meetings (Lords 2000)
• Written hand outs are also covered
• Consider risks of live broadcasting; will there be wild accusations? For example alleged misconduct of injustice – allegations about the police may be made which you would not want broadcasted live on television. Even though you are protected under qualified privilege you would not be allowed to make defamatory statements without explanation.  

Inquests;

The purpose of an inquest is to establish the cause of death if it appears ‘violent or unnatural’.

• Conducted by coroners
• Does not rule on who may be responsible
•  Inquests provide great material for stories

Inquest juries;

In exceptional cases where the coroner rules that;

• Deceased was in state detention
• Death result of an action by police
• Result of workplace accident

Types of verdict;

• Narrative verdict – increasingly common
• Short form – ‘natural cases’/’misadventure’/’accidental death’/’dependence on drugs’
• Unlawful killing or open verdict

If there is a jury and a verdict of unlawful killing or open verdict is decided it makes a much more interesting report. As the inquest has gone ahead and a jury needed to made the final verdict it is clear that the police have taken a different view however if the jury says that someone was unlawfully killed it puts the case back to the police.

Media Rules;

·         Inquest is a court proceeding protected by absolute privilege

·         Covered by contempt of court Act – so no publishing of prejudicial material

·         Coroners can impose reporting restrictions – if a child is present or giving a statement.

Ethics and treasure;

• Be aware of bereaved families in your coverage
•   Coroners must decide whether found objects of value are ‘treasure’ and subject to reward. 

Media law & Ethics - Lecture 5, 12/02/14

Copyright;

Copyright is a legal concept that is enacted by most governments which grants the creator of an original piece of work exclusive rights to its use and distribution. When someone wants to use this piece of work it enables the creator to intellectual wealth and allows them to receive financial compensation for their work. 

Through our work on WINOL copyright has often been a topic of debate and has led to issues so it is essential that we know how to keep ourselves protected within the copyright laws. Whenever you write something, produce a graphic or take a photograph you are creating intellectual property so by being a part of this creative industry we ourselves are making new creative copy so we should respect the principles of copyright laws. The issues surrounding journalism is the digital revolution that has effected the business spectrum which has put journalists under immense strain, because of copyright it protects other peoples creative content.

As journalist we are always taking quotes, recycling material and putting our own individual mark on it, we are essentially using other peoples quotes and 'lifting' them. This is not a breach of copyright because we can use these quotes under fair dealing, which happens routinely.

When lifting quotes or using any material from somebody else we must attribute it to them. These are simple rules that must be adhered to which keeps us safe within the copyright law, for example attributing the author.

With every judgement you make it is important to recognise the risk, you must then identify if it is copyright and whether you can use it or not. Again it is another grey area so it is better to be safe than sorry and double check with a lawyer before you use it.

A parody exemption of copyright at the moment is the most recent case of the 'Dumb Starbucks' coffee shop in the USA which is a parody of the legit Starbucks company; http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-26131013

When a star dies what can I broadcast?

When somebody dies a report will often have clips of the films they have starred in. As it is a news event we can use the clips that are relevant to the report. The fair dealing rule allows us to use the material with conditions attached such as attributing the copyright holder.
The copyright laws surrounding the deceased will expire 70 years after their death.

Film trailers;

When a film has been released there are trailers that advertise the film and after a certain amount of time broadcasters are able to use clips from these trailers. If a broadcaster needs the clips immediately they will need consent and often have to pay a substantial amount to attain what they need, if this is not feasible there is the option of using stills which are a lot cheaper.

Photographs; 

You cannot use a photograph under fair dealing, you MUST have consent. Watermarks are often added to stop people from stealing the photograph and claiming it as their own. An example of this is the story of 'Canoe's this in Panama'  which saw the Daily Mirror and the BBC make an agreement that the BBC could use the photo of John Darwin who faked his own death and his wife Anne Darwin who was still alive. Evidently the Mirror did not own this photograph and therefore had no rights to it which enabled the photographer to sue both the BBC and the Daily Mirror.

Why it matters?

As a journalist you need to be trusted and therefore must consider copyright at all times. If you ignore the concerns and issues surrounding copyright it could result in you paying extensive fines.

What is protected?

• Books
• Films
• Music
• Photographs 

What is not protected?

• Undeveloped ideas
• Slogans
• Catchphrases

An example of being able to use the above is when the authors of the Holy Grail took Dan Brown's "The Davinci Code" to court however Dan Brown won because there is no law protecting ideas. 

Fair dealing; 

For the purpose of reporting current events we as journalists are allowed to;

• Lift the general gist of stories and quotes from rivals
• It must be attributed
• It must be in the public's interest
• The usage must be fair 
• 
  

Fair dealing will allow;

• Widening the stories in the public interest
• Criticism and reviews
• Broadcasters can use bits of film which stars are famous for, essentially clips for free
• Photographs are never subject to fair dealing. 

Danger area;

• The interest - Youtube, Facebook etc. 
• Sports coverage - these have news access rights but are subject to big contract deals. The BBC Wilkinson kick is not owned by the BBC, ITV owns it. The sports access is an issue of concern.
• Photographs and film archives.  

Points to remember;

• Recognise copyright issues early
• Contacting the rights holders will take time
• Tell others if you have been copyright cleared
• Do not lift material without referencing. 

Media Law & Ethics - Lecture 3, 29/01/14

Defamation and Libel;

As a journalist you have to know the legal system inside out, when reporting crime defamation and libel is another big danger area; 

"Don't ever hold back from suggesting to a colleague that there might be any legal risk."

Ian Anderson

Learning about defamation is key as any legal problems will not do your career any good especially when considering your reputation, knowing these legal problems will help. If you do get involved with any legal scrapes it can be demoralising and expensive. As a journalist you will be much better at your job if you know where the dangers and risks are regarding any legalities.

Defamation; what is it?

• A statement written or broadcast that has affected a person or business's reputation.
• Has lowered them in estimation of right thinking people.
• Causes them to be shunned or avoided.
• Disparages them in their business, trade or profession.
• Exposes them to hatred, ridicule or contempt. 

Defamation via pictures;

• This is a common danger in TV broadcast, can cause juxtaposition problems.
• Careless use of background shots with voice over can be defamatory.
• People or companies must not be identifiable in certain contexts, e.g. Child abuse, fraud. 
• Inaccurate shots.

Reputation and meaning;

Your reputation is precious, especially if you are in the public eye, have money or both! Be on your guard when writing your report on big brands and celebrities, it is key that you evaluate the risks when writing about certain people. 

• whether something is defamatory is in the eyes of the regular person. It will be judged by the jury, just like in the court of law. The new act however cuts back on the jury and cases will be judged only by the judge. 
• Inference is a hazard - read your content back to yourself before you send it.
• Innuendo is also a hazard. 

The three key elements;

Publication + defamation + identification = LIBEL 

Libel defences;

• Risk of libel is dangerous. Low threshold of proof for whether the statement is defamatory.
• Statement must cause 'serious harm' - forced you to leave job, lost money etc. Hitting an ego more than a livelihood is not libel. 
• Truth, previously justification  is true and you can prove it.
• Honest opinion, previously fair comment is the test for fair comment and must show that it is an opinion which could be held by an honest person based upon a known fact at the time of writing. 
• Public interest, the main campaigning issues that people argue for.

(Reynolds defence was raised in the late 1990s when Reynolds, the irish prime minister tried to sue the sunday times for a defamatory article. The newspaper argued it was in the publics interest and won. the issue was raising was in public interest, they were allowed the defence. If you can show that it is overwhelmingly in the public's interest then you will be okay.) 

• Web publication protections that are new. It is a defence for the operator to show that it was not the operator who posted the statement on the website. 
• Peer reviewed academic journals are privileged. 
• Absolute privilege - court reporting
• Qualified privilege - police quotes, pressers etc. 
• Single publication rule
• Bane and antidote - defamation removed by content. 

No defence when;

• You have not checked your facts. 
• When you have not 'referred up' and failed to check with news editor.
• Always put yourself in the shoes of the person to see how it might be viewed.
• Getting carried away with a 'juicy' story.
• Not bothered to wait for lawyers opinion.

Recognise the risk;

• Who am I writing about and could they sue?
• Is what I am writing potentially defamatory?

2013 act;

This act protects people with very little resources in order that small businesses don't go bankrupt. Community news website, for example, would not be taken to libel at court as there is such a small chance of them being defamed. Balance is now being addressed to protect people from being defamed and giving them freedom of speech. 

The case we have previously studied known as McLibel where campaigners went up against a giant global company, McDonald's. The question being asked was were they that much of a threat to the company? Under the new regime this would not have gone to court, the campaigners had their freedom to campaign about it. 

A new defamation act is in force from December which is slightly different to the libel defences in place. Roy Greenslade has researched and blogged about this new act and how the current libel cases are still being used with the old act. 

Current Libel cases;

• Andrew Michael - Plebgate row
• Lord McAlpine - BBC NewsNight. He also went after all the tweeters commenting on the case in particular Sally Bercow's tweet "Why is Lord McAlpine trending? *innocent face*"
• Jigsaw identification - because of social media it has now entered the world of defamation. 

Media Law & Ethics - Lecture 2, 22/01/14

Reporting Crime;

As a journalist there are many potential legal risks when reporting on stories, the main two being;

• Prejudice - an adverse judgement or opinion formed beforehand or without knowledge or examination of the facts. 
• Contempt - open disrespect or willful disobedience of the authority of a court of law or legislative body. 

When a case becomes legally active is when a journalist has to be most aware of the potential legal risks that could occur when reporting on the case. A case becomes legally active when an arrest is made with the issue of an arrest warrant , a magistrates court will then issue a summons and the person will be charged. 

In the news this week there has been a criminal case regarding the murder of Mikaeel Kular, a three year old boy who went missing and has now been found dead. In this kind of case, the jury are asked by the judge to come to their verdict 'beyond reasonable doubt'. This is why it is essential that no articles are published which are in contempt or have prejudicial content as a member of the jury who could potentially be reading an article could be influenced by what is written. 

The mail has been highlighted for doing so this week by Guardian journalist Roy Greenslade via his blog. The article in question has branded Mikaeel's mother as a 'drinker' and ' a social butterfly' portraying her in a negative light, creating a 'bad character' which breaches her right to a fair trial.

In defence, the mail has claimed that the article is not able to be seen in Scotland, where the trial is taking place. Another possible defence for this article being written is the 'fade factor'. The trial could take place in six months time by then the article would have been forgotten about and would not affect the case. 

Another story that is relevant to the topics discussed in today's lecture is the case of Lord Rennard who has been suspended from the Liberal Democrat party over sexual harassment claims and will not be allowed back into the party until he apologises. Although all criminal charges have been dropped, a victim could now dispute this in a civil court and he would be judged on the 'balance of probabilities'.

Rules of detention without charge;

• The police have 24 hours to question.
• Senior officer can extend this by 12 hours. 
• Magistrates can extend this by 36 hours.
• Cannot exceed 96 hours.
• Terror suspect limit is 28 days. 

Pre-trial reports, the seven key points;

• Names of defendants, ages, addresses and occupations.
• Charges faced or the equivalent of a brief summary.
• Name of court and magistrates name.
• Names of solicitors or barristers present.
• Date and place to where the case may be adjourned too.
• Any arrangements regarding bail.
• Whether legal aid had been granted.  

There are three categories of offence;

1. Indictable only - Sentencing in the Crown Courts for serious offences, prison time of 5+ years.
2. Either way offences - This can be heard in either a Magistrates court or a Crown court. 
3. Summary offences - Stays within a Magistrates court. 

The key stages of a trial are;

• Prosecution opening.
• Key prosecution witnesses.
• Defence opening.
• Key defence witnesses.
• Judges summary.
• Jury sent out, deliberation and verdict.

Court reporting rules;

• Contemporaneous (Fast)
• Accurate
• Fair 
• No recording
• Children under the age of 18 are legally juvenile and cannot be named. 

Magistrates powers;

• 6 month jail sentences
• Fines of up to £3,000
• Suspended sentences
• Conditional discharge
• Community orders
• ASBO's

Media Law & Ethics - Lecture One, 15/01/14

Topics that will be covered this semester;

• Outline of the legal system 
• Crime reporting and courts
• Libel and defamation
• Investigative Journalism and privilege
• Confidentiality and Privacy
• Freedom of Information
• Copyright and Codes of conduct
• Reporting elections

Ian Anderson, ex senior producer of BBC News will be guiding us through each lecture, helping us to recap any media law issues that we may have forgotten or need updating on.
As journalists it is essential that we know what is legally acceptable and what is completely off limits with Ian emphasising to recognise the risk in everything that we do, 'if in doubt leave it out'.
With the laws changing every year it is important for any journalist to know the latest OFCOM/ Press Complaints Commission regulations, particularly when under scrutiny about what we write and how we ethically act.

With the Levenson inquiry in full swing, there is currently an argument circulating the press as to whether the PCC has failed in relation to phone hacking. The question being asked that is causing huge debate is to whether the press should have their own regulator or should it be kept private? Who polices the press? Newspapers are desperately trying to hold onto their self regulation that does not involve legal statue where as broadcast journalism is in a much more secure position with its regulations in place and working well, with many content to follow these rules.

The court provides journalists with stories due to the qualified privilege right to accurately report from the court. The news this week has been a good example of this with three of Britain's top celebrities appearing in court under charges of sexual assault on minors (operation Yew Tree). The accused; Dave Lee Travis (DJ and Top of the Pops presenter), Rolf Harris (TV personality) and William Roach (Coronation Street's Ken Barlow) have all pleaded innocent.

With the trial beginning the prosecution will open, explaining the details of the case to the jury. As a reporter all we will hear will be the negative parts of the case as the defence has not yet had a chance to speak and put across their points to the jury. This will come later on in the trial and the reporters must report this as well so the story is unbiased. Unfortunately there are many issues surrounding the defamation of the person on trial with a risk of damaging their reputation which I will go into more detail about in the upcoming weeks.

Another story in the news this week that addresses the destruction of character is the case involving Nigella Lawson who appeared in court where her former assistants were on trial for fraud. The source of this came from court and took the media by storm with every publication reporting on the case due to her high celebrity profile. Nigella was there as a witness to the case but people debated whether or not Nigella should have been protected, e.g. had a lawyer present. This was because Nigella was put through a gruelling amount of questioning and scrutiny about her private life regarding drug use. Therefore the argument is; whether a witness in court should be allowed a lawyer as in this circumstance, these kind of revelations are more damaging to Nigella, a high profile celebrity and her reputation than that of an average person.

Another part of the law that we will be looking at will be libel. A change in libel took place last year so we will be given all the information to the updated regulations surrounding this. The regulation basically states that a person can plead libel if the press has 'brought them harm' but the person would need satisfactory evidence to prove this.
A big libel case was famously known as 'McLibel'. McDonald's took a couple to court that were campaigning against their food. Granted the couple were defaming the company but was it necessary to take them to court? The campaigners couldn't afford lawyers and had to defend themselves when in court keeping McDonald's in court for months which cost them millions. This is an unlikely case but the chance of it happening again is plausible. Small campaigners against big worldwide corporations is an unlikely battle but occasionally happens which is good for small hyper local news corporations.

The Hierarchy of the UK courts;

1. At the top is the Supreme court
2. Below the Supreme court is the Court of Appeal which is split into; Civil division and Criminal division
3. High court of Justice split into; Queens Bench division, Family division, Chancery division
4. Crown court (Criminal division)
5. Magistrates court (Criminal division)
6. Country court (Chancery division)

The Levenson Enquiry

The Levenson Enquiry is an on-going investigation into the cultures, practises and ethics of the British Press that intends to examine the moral and legal conducts of media organisations and the journalists working for them.
The Levenson enquiry began in November following the News International phone hacking scandal accusing employees of the paper of phone hacking, police bribery and instigating an improper influence in the pursuit of publishing stories.
The scandal dubbed ‘hack gate’ by the press caused an endless controversy regarding the News of the World and other defunct British newspapers. Investigations determined that celebrities, politicians and members of the Royal Family were victims of phone hacking activities between the periods of 2005 and 2007 however in July of 2011, it was revealed that the phones of murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler, relatives of deceased British soldiers and sufferers of the 7/7 London bombings were also tampered with resulting in a public uproar.
The corruption and immoral actions of these journalists who had participated in these scandals depicts a distasteful profession, with celebrities such as Hugh Grant, JK Rowling and Charlotte Church providing evidence as core participants to pursue the convictions of reporters involved in the proceedings. Parents of Milly Dowler and Madeline McCann have also given evidence of who most would consider to have gone through enough to warrant pestering by reporters.
After these revelations, Prime Minister David Cameron announced to Parliament that an inquiry would be established under the Enquiries Act appointing Lord Justice Levenson as chairman of the inquiry. The investigation is currently separated into four parts, the first of which looks at the relationship between the press and the public, part two explores the relationships between the press and police and the extent to which that has operated in the public interest. Part three examines the relationship between press and politicians and finally part four seeks to provide recommendations for a more effective policy and regulation to support the integrity and freedom of the press whilst encouraging high ethical standards.
The purpose of the enquiry was summed up by Lord Levenson himself expressing his contempt for the press’s lacking ability to self-regulate, simply stating “who guards the guardians?”
The press provides an essential check on all aspects of public life; any failure within the media affects all of us, disturbing the relationship between the press and public. These ‘guardians’ of public life have crossed the line, losing sight of producing stories which are in ‘the public’s interest’ and stories which are now of ‘interest to the public’. It is not only celebrities that have been pursued but also targeted were the 'infamous' such as Christopher Jefferies, the man who was wrongly vilified by the press over the murder of Joanna Yeates. It is understood that the UKs tabloid media is now driven by gossip rather than any desire to hold peoples interest leading to hearings taking place between November and February, following testimonies from complainants about press intrusion, press behaviour, and continuous harassment.

The second theme in the enquiry looks at the relations between the press and the police, whose failure to succeed in revealing the hacking sooner left a huge mark on the officers involved. It has been proven that members of the Met police have consistently taken huge bribes in return for stories confessed by Sue Akers, the Mets deputy assistant commissioner. The history of the press has always been known to have long paid for stories and tip-offs, a way to ensure that a contact always came back to you and not a rival. Payments were generally the equivalent of a drink, rather than the huge sums alleged by DC Akers. The public are left thinking payments by the press are corrupt and that it’s about obtaining the newest and juiciest gossip rather than stories in the publics interest.
The third theme looks at the relationships politicians cultivate with journalists. Looking at the relationship from an alternative angle, although corrupt, it is essential for politicians if they want to achieve their political and policy goals, however distasteful that might be. This angle however leaves consequences for the role of the “Fourth Estate”, the body which holds the Houses of Parliament in check, allowing the media to accrue huge power without any formal responsibility. An Inquiry has been called as it symbolises an acceptance by the UK Houses of Parliament that they do not have the ability or that its members themselves are too involved in the crisis to be able to properly arbitrate on the matter.
The outcomes for the future are uncertain but if the Levenson Enquiry is to lead to change it has various options at its disposal; legal or regulatory. The first option is to recommend legislative action. Britain already has a strong libel law allowing public figures and businesses a platform to attack papers they believe have slandered them. Big companies have on more than one occasion used Britain’s libel laws to legally intimidate newspapers out of running with legitimate stories that are arguably very much in the public’s interest, leaving the option of a new privacy law. A strong, new privacy law would be a big step however could hold potentially devastating consequences for UK investigative journalism.
This leaves another option, the reform and strengthening of industry regulation. The PCC has been strongly criticized for its inability to police the press, however the PCC has managed to survive but it is almost certain it won’t survive now, at least not in its current form. There are no simple answers to what might replace the PCC as there are two key problems for any new regulatory body, the lack of power which comes with any voluntary non-statutory body and the unique subjectivity of news, the product the press creates and sells. Any new body would have to expand its remit to judge on a larger set of issues not least the ethics and methods of getting stories in the first place. However withstanding these challenges, a new and strengthened industry regulator is probably the preferred choice of the majority. In contrast a strong regulator with a clearly defined remit could potentially hold newspapers to account and instil new legitimacy on an industry not only suffering from an image problem but also a decline in sales as internet based news booms.

Elections

What is an election?

Parliament are basically the people in power who are not the Queen. Parliament is made up of a joint coalition of Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives. This parliament can run for a maximum of five years, before which the Queen will dissolve Parliament to allow a newly elected Parliament to set up and take charge straight away.
However Parliament can be dissolved at any time if the government no longer has the majority or an election can be triggered if the government loses a vote of confidence to the commons. Once an early election is triggered, a new party is quickly chosen to replace the existing party that better represents the countries wants and needs. However Jim Callaghan lost by one vote/seat in the year of 1979, the winter of discontent making way for Thatchers reign, which only just represented the majority by one vote/seat.

The current coalition government passed a law fixing the date of the elections every five years, making the next election date due on the 7th May 2015. Up until now the Prime minister has fixed the date of the election, making it a tradition to hold them on a Thursday since 1935.

In order to vote you have to register in your own constituency, there is approximately 45 million people on the electoral register, however not all of them will decide to vote. Joining the register has been made almost compulsory by any person taking a "credit rating" such as a loan, mortgage, deposit or credit card which then uses the information from the electoral register.

British citizens living overseas CAN still vote, but less than 15,000 of the 5.5 million actually do. Having said this though, there has been an increase in postal votes from across the country - those not going to polling stations but sending their vote in through post services. This made up 15% of the votes cast in 2005.

Who cant vote?

Under 18's, House of Lords, EU citizens, citizens of another country (except Irish republicans/common wealth) and those serving a sentence in prison.

In 1966 it was thought that all adults over the age of 18 should be allowed to vote in the general election as long as they were registered on the electoral register.

How does a Party win?

The system used in the UK is known as first-past-the-post which is not a proportionally representational system. Whoever gains the majority of seats gets elected and sets up their cabinet in Parliament. This means that national voting percentages are not reflected in Parliament.

In 2005 Labour had only 35% of the votes but won over half the seats. This can lead to tactical voting by the public. For instance, in Winchester a strictly Conservative city with hints of lib dems, will result in Labour supporters voting for Liberal Democrats so as to reduce the chances of Conservatives winning.

The Growth of Political Parties

19th Century;

"Rotten Boroughs" - This time period saw a huge shift in population and demographic due to the rise of the industrial north, e.g Manchester and Liverpool becoming the root of the Industrial Revolution. Because of this the Reform Act of 1832 soon came into play in the hope of shifting representation towards the towns and the North.

The aims of the Reform Act were to stop misrepresentation of voters, for example to stop instances such as "Old Serum" where multiple MP's were representing a village with a voting population of about ten.
It has also been suggested that the Reform Act prevented a revolution in England equal to that of France or Syria. This is supposedly because the issues of unfair democracy were being solved politically without violence or unrest. The Act gave people a political voice within Parliament.

After this we were granted with the Repeal of the Corn Laws, a shattering change resulting in the end of the Tory V Whig system, hence the creation of the Liberals and Conservatives Party.

In the second half of the 19th Century we also see the electoral reform, and a much higher competition for the urban working class vote. This was due to the steady increase of franchise acts such as Education, Housing and Health. This happened because the working class were making money, and were therefore not content with getting by on their wage, but wanted to invest in improvement and the demand for a better quality of living began to grow, resulting in the growth of a middle class population.

The First World War;

The Post War saw the increase of Socialism and with it the rise of the Labour Party in the 1920's. There was, however a resurgence of conservative politics in the depression years.

The Second World War;

1945 - This saw the first 'proper' Labour government with a secure majority which saw the multiple democratic reforms including the NHS, Keynesian Economics and Trade Union rights. After the war we saw resources being pulled back into Britain to replenish the injured homeland, resulting in the dismantling of the British Empire, giving India independence.

The government was against Churchill who stood during the war as a conservative. Despite his war hero persona, Churchill was quickly moved aside making way for Labour's head liner, Atlee. The majority of policies that were brought forwards were very liberal, and heavily relied upon the 'Beverage Report'. This was the foundation of the Welfare system we use today.

Post War;

The Beverage Report took off, with claims to "protect you from cradle to grave". This also saw the introduction of Keynes, and the idea that the government managed the economy for aims of full employment. Otherwise known as "Managed Capitalism".

Late 20th Century;

In the 70's we saw utter despair for Labour, with the huge landslide defeat to the Conservatives, which was also known as the Winter of Discontent to bring us out of the depression. This "winter" saw gravediggers go on strike, refusing to bury the dead as the Trade Unions were gaining too much power and greediness which the public then deemed a strict Conservative government the perfect solution.

We then welcomed Margaret Thatcher. Straight away she attacked the Trade Unions, in particular the miners, the top dogs in other words to make a point that she was not to be messed with. After this she sold off national attributes aiming for utter privatisation. To basically let the invisible hand of the market make money. This sparked consumption within Britain, and a heavy focus on London as the investment hotspot of the world.

This led to a major clash of right V left. The right wing were living by the motto that the "best will achieve" because the rich were just getting richer. The left wing saw this as highly unfair.

Tory Major Sleaze;

Major, a Tory described himself and the cabinet as a representation of true family morals and lifestyle for Britain. The papers then tore this apart, reporting conclusive evidence of bribery, prostitution and irresponsible lifestyle choices taken by John Major himself as well as other Tory cabinet members. This was the tabloid 'boom' period as gossipy articles could be written non-stop about leading political figures as all journalists were protected by qualified privilege and therefore could not be sued, as these were public eye figures and their actions were of the highest importance to the public's interest.
Jonathan Aitken, head of military finances was reported outright by the Guardian as taking bribes. Aitken denied the claims, using the line "the Sword of Truth" as his main defence weapon. Shortly after he was jailed for taking bribes and for purgatory (lying under oath).

Rise of New Labour;

With the Conservative Party in ruin, Blair soon took over leading the quickest turn around landslide victory ever known in modern politics. With this New Labour kept growing, and growing.

An introduction to National Politics

A quick recap on Local Government;

1st Tier - County Council
2nd Tier - District/City Council
3rd Tier - Parish Council

All of these combined is known as Unitary Authority.

Councillors elected by constituencies are the representatives in a county council.
High ranking members of the government make up the Cabinet with the chief executive earning £94,000 a year.

National Politics;

Parliament and the news combined equals political reporting.
Journalists from the constitutional position have The Fourth State - they are the watchdogs of Parliament. "Must not only be done but must be seen to be done"

Legal right; Privellege

John Wilkes was known for being a hero journalist. He was an English radical leading a colourful life. He was forced into exile numerous times however he undertook important positions such as the mayor of London whilst also being a key memeber of parliament. He was elected three times from prison.
His private life was notorious, with countless mistresses, debt and duels.
Wilkes started a weekly radical publication, known as the North Briton which attacked MP Lord Brute and King George III causing contempt of Parliament.
During his lifetime, Wilkes obtained free speech and the constitutional basis of free speech.

Reporting of Parliament

When reporting on Parliament, it uses the protection of the city of London against Westminister. It has established a statutory qualified privellege (QP) for reporting on Parliament. Local authorities and many others also have statutory QP however this is subject to contradiction.

Legal right; Comment/free expression (Article 10, Human Rights Act)

Fair comment provides a defence if not a comment (i.e an opinion) is supported by facts, is honestly held, is on a matter of public interest and is not malicious.

In the US, all elected officials are not allowed to sue for libel. By way of comment you can say pretty much what you like about politicans - and there is no need (in newspapers) for balance. However on TV and Radio you must have balance (representation of the People Act) as well as the BroadCasting Act, Section 6. You cannot be sued, but breaking RPA is a criminal act. The airtime rule is regulation and not a criminal matter but the BBC could lose their charter.

Westminister;

The rules of privelege mean that you can report virtually anything said in the House. But dont forget the sub-judice rules as well as the last big taboo at Westminister; dont mention the rules.
Voting in the Commons is formally called a divison. The parties try to control the way in which their MP's vote through whipping unless there is a free vote on matters of conscience.
Mp's - Cabinet. MPQ's shadow the cabinet.

House of Lords;

All new laws have to be approved by both Houses of Parliament (except tax raising measures which are for MP's alone to decide)
-Peers are not elected and do not represent constituencies.
-Peers are not paid a salary, thought they can claim expenses.
-Peers are not allowed to vote on changes to taxation and finance.
-Peers never have the final word, though the government may sometimes choose to compromise.

The same amendments must be agreed by both Houses. In the event of a disagreement, the Lords do not have the power to reject legislation - it can always be over ruled by the governments use of the Parliament Act.

To create a law...

You begin with a green paper. This is the consultation document. The document will then go through these stages;

-First reading
-Second reading
-Committee stage
-Report stage
-Third reading
-House of Lords
-Consideration of Lords amendments
-Royal Assent

Nearly 750 peers are entitled to sit in the upper house. 500 hereditary peers were expelled in 1999, leaving just 92 who owe their place as lawmakers due to accident of birth.
Most of the rest have been appointed as life peers, either for their eminence in their own profession or loyal service to a political party. DO NOT mention cash for peerages.
Hansard is an official report of the proceedings of Parliament which is published daily.

Party Funding;

Party funding - subscriptions from members, donations from wealth donors, state funding however party membership has fallen dramatically - so parties rely heavily on wealthy donors. This then leads to claims of cash for honours which Lloyd George has sold openly.

The Miscarriage of Justice

For today's public affairs lecture we began to look at what an Innocence Project would entail. The Innocence Project is a non- profit legal organisation set up to proving the innocence of wrongly convicted people. Aspects such as DNA testing are set up, as well as reforming the criminal justice systems to prevent further injustice.
The projects are mostly handled by law students all over the country however places such as Winchester allow third year Journalism students to also take on cases.

Up to the mid 1980's citizens thought the justice system was fair.
However aspects such as the Guildford and Birmingham bombings in the 70's began to lead to the systems downfall.

The Guildford pub bombings occured on the 5th of October 1974. The IRA (Irish Republican Army) detonated two bombs at two different pubs killing four soldiers and one civilian, whilst a further sixty five were wounded. These attacks were the beginning of a year long campaign by the IRA service Unit until they were captured after the Balcome Street seige.
The Metropolitan police were under enormous pressure to apprehend the IRA bombers responsible for these attacks in England. In December of 1974 three men and one woman was arrested. They later became known as the "Guildford four".
They were falsely convicted of further bombings in 1975 whilst being held in prison for fifteen years. Their convictions were later overturned in the appeal courts after it was proved the convictions had been based on confessions obtained by torture, whilst evidence clearing them of charges was not reported by the police.

A similar case happened in Birmingham, during the year of 1974 where again, two pubs were bombed. However this time twenty one people were killed whilst one hundred and eighty two were injured. A considerable amount more than the Guildford bombings. The IRA was immediately and widely blamed however they denied all allegations of the attack. It was later discovered that a small militant group named "Red Flag" were believed to be responsible, however this was treated with skepticism by the police.
In the end the now known, "Birmingham Six" were convicted of carrying out the attack,
inevitably being charged with life imprisonement. They spent sixteen years in jail. At the conclusion of their second appeal, their convictions were quashed after scientific evidence and documents setting out the confessions were deemed unreliable. They were released on the 14th March 1991.

The CCRC

The Criminal Cases of Review system is there to protect people in the miscarriage of justice. They are the gate keeper in the court of appeal - you cannot appeal if you have not gone through the CCRC.
However numerous people are sceptical of the system, saying that it doesn't work.