Nothing but net?
July 13, 2009
The NZ government and NZ ISPs are quietly working on a form of internet filtering that starts to look a bit like censorship. Read these fascinating analyses.
Topics: Censorship, Internet issues | No Comments »
Blogger busted
July 12, 2009
A British detective blogging about police issues under the pseudonym “NightJack” has failed in his attempt to stop the Times from revealing his identity.
The ruling suggests that anonymous bloggers don’t have a reasonable expectation that their identities will be kept private. Well, those who are breaching police regulations in writing their blog, anyway. But much of the reasoning applies to others too. Blogging, says Justice Eady, is essentially a public activity. It doesn’t gibe with the sorts of things that are usually protectable: information about personal relationships, mental or physical health, financial affairs or one’s family or domestic arrangements (or, as Geoffrey Robertson and Andrew Nicol put it: “the cradle, the school and the hospital, the toilet, the bedroom and the grave.”)
There’s a difference between wanting to remain anonymous and having a reasonable expectation of privacy, he ruled. For it to be protected, any reasonable person who comes across the information ought to recognise that it should be treated as confidential.
Even if the blogger did have a reasonable expectation of privacy, continued Eady J, the public interest in his identity outweighed his interest in privacy. He was breaching police regs. This could be seen as wrongdoing by a public servant. He was advancing political criticisms and was highly critical of central and local policing strategies. It’s useful for readers to be able to assess such opinions against knowledge about the identity of the source, said the judge.
In one sense, this can be seen as a triumph for freedom of expression. The paper was allowed to publish. The privacy threshold was set fairly high.
But in another sense, you can see this as a blow to free speech. Privacy and free speech lined up here: it was anonymity that allowed this exercise of free speech. The blog, which provided insights into policing issues that otherwise wouldn’t have been available, and won a prestigious award, is now dead.
The price of free speech can sometimes be measured in … free speech.
Topics: General, Injunctions, Internet issues, Privacy tort | No Comments »
Not quite…
July 12, 2009
The Herald On Sunday has a story on the Solicitor-General’s investigation of blogs and social networking sites that are commenting on the Clayton Weatherston trial in ways that may prejudice the trial. I’m quoted explaining the reason for the law of contempt, and also as saying it has nothing to do with shutting down freedom of speech. Of course, that’s wrong, and I don’t believe I ever said that. What I remember saying is something like “If you’re worried that this is about shutting down freedom of speech, then bear in mind why we have these rules”.
For the record: to the extent that contempt of court stops us commenting on court cases, it does restrict freedom of speech, and sometimes in ways I think are unjustifiable, though when the laws of contempt are properly and carefully applied, such restrictions are usually justified (in terms of policy and in terms of section 5 of the NZ Bill of Rights Act).
Topics: Contempt of Court, Media ethics | 50 Comments »
Muckhacking
July 10, 2009
For anyone who’s missed it: a fascinating expose of journalistic practices at News of the World. They hire private investigators to illegally hack public figures’ mobile phones; try to pass it off as a one-off lapse by a rogue journalist if caught out; and if sued pay out enormous sums as hush money in confidential settlements.
Topics: Breach of confidence, Media ethics, Privacy tort | No Comments »
Laws unto himself
July 7, 2009
Michael Laws has been potted by the Broadcasting Standards Authority again, this time for a tirade against two fire service spokespeople, who had warned the public about the dangers of leaving chips unattended in a frying pan and not having working smoke alarms. This was after a fatal fire, killing four children, had been caused by… chips left unattended in a frying pan with no working smoke alarm nearby.
Just doing their job? Looking to save lives by averting similar tragedies? Not according to Michael Laws, who railed against them for three hours on his talkshow:
They were exploiting the tragedy? How were your ratings that day, Michael?
PS. A cogent response by Laws:
The BSA should be disbanded. There is no need for it. My job’s not to offer balance, it’s to offer strong opinion. I never, ever go too far. I’m not a namby-pamby left-wing liberal commie journalist.
Topics: Broadcasting Standards Authority | 1,123 Comments »
Defamation stoush looming in London
July 7, 2009
Looks like a humdinger.
Topics: Defamation | No Comments »
Well, sometimes there’s eye-gouging too
July 7, 2009
From Radio NZ this morning:
The National Rugby League has plunged to an embarrassing low with the Sydney Roosters fined $50,000 and their Queensland State of Origin star Nate Miles suspended for six games for defecating in the corridor of a central coast hotel naked and in a drunken stupor. That’s sport.
Topics: General | No Comments »
New BSA member
June 29, 2009
Mary Anne Shanahan has been appointed to replace Diane Musgrave at the BSA. She is a lawyer, but is not being appointed chair (that’s still Jo Morris): she has been appointed to the “community rep” position. (One of the four members is appointed after consultation with broadcasters, and one after consultation with “public interest groups in relation to broadcasting”, and that’s now Shanahan).
The terms of the other members are coming to a close soon, too. I hope the new members will be able to build on what’s been a pretty solid and consistent record from the current crew.
Topics: Broadcasting Standards Authority | No Comments »
Media law guide
June 28, 2009
For the edification of the masses, I’ve added a range of headings over on the left giving basic information on some of the most important areas of New Zealand media law. If you want more detail (particularly from a journalist’s point of view) you might try my book Media Minefield. If you want even more detail (particularly from a lawyer’s point of view) I recommend Burrows and Cheer, Media Law in New Zealand (5ed Oxford 2005).
Topics: General | 48 Comments »
How I think the Bill of Rights is supposed to work
June 28, 2009
I’ve mentioned an article I wrote with Claudia Geiringer about the Bill of Rights Act for Law, Liberty and Legislation – Essays in Honour of John Burrows QC. It’s called “Moving from Self-Justication to Demonstrable Justification – the Bill of Rights and the Broadcasting Standards Authority”. It has already been cited favourably in a couple of High Court decisions. I’ve posted a copy here.
Topics: Broadcasting Standards Authority, NZ Bill of Rights Act | 2 Comments »
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