Media criticism from an Ombudsman
Thursday, December 6th, 2007Some damning quotes about the performance of the media from Ombudsman Mel Smith’s report into the justice sector: The criminal justice system is complex and difficult. Unfortunately the rhetoric that we hear in the media and elsewhere almost daily tends to convey an impression that there is some simple answer to crime and criminal justice. That […]
Free speech audit in Australia
Thursday, December 6th, 2007Former NSW Ombudsman Irene Moss has conducted an audit into the state of free speech in Australia and concluded that “free speech and media freedom are being whittled away by gradual and sometimes almost imperceptible degrees.” I confess I’m always a bit suspicious of death-by-a-thousand-cuts claims, since they often overlook or underestimate the ways in which free […]
OIA book out
Thursday, December 6th, 2007Nicola White has just released her book on the performance of the Official Information Act. She gives it a B. The book is called “Free and Frank: Making the Official Information Act 1982 work better”. It’s indispensible for anyone who wants to understand the workings of the OIA. The fact that Nicola used to work at […]
NZ Herald archives really in contempt?
Monday, December 3rd, 2007The Solicitor-General has told the NZ Herald to take some stories off its archives, because they are in contempt of court. The stories contain (presumably prejudicial) information about murder accused Liam James Reid/Julian Edgecombe. I don’t know what this material is. It may, for example, contain information about previous convictions. If the judge specifically suppressed this […]
Press Council review: it’s a bit weird
Thursday, November 29th, 2007The good As I said earlier, I agree whole-heartedly with almost all of the recommendations made by the reviewers of the Press Council, Sir Ian Barker and Prof Lewis Evans. Yes, scrap the requirement for complainants to sign away their rights to go to court: as the reviewers say, it’s of very doubtful legality. Hell […]
Why did Radio Waatea pull its interview with Clint Rickards?
Monday, November 26th, 2007The media don’t usually go along with requests from an interviewee’s lawyers to pull a plum interview. I can’t think of any legal rule they’d be breaking by running the interview. If Rickards is breaching his agreement with the police, that’s his problem. [Update: the interview has now been broadcast]
S-G contacts Fairfax about contempt
Friday, November 23rd, 2007The Solicitor-General is reportedly asking Fairfax newspapers to explain their actions (publishing the “terrorism files” information), saying they may be in contempt. The story doesn’t say whether he’s suggesting they breached the Crimes Act, too, by publishing information obtained by interception warrants. A “please-explain” letter strikes me as a bit odd in the circumstances. What […]
Comments on Rogers case
Wednesday, November 21st, 2007The missing angle in the media Did anyone in the media report that virtually all the Supreme Court judges seem to believe that, as Blanchard J puts it, “the police would appear to have acted beyond their powers” in releasing the videotaped confession to the media, because they are required to treat evidence as secret […]
Sunday and the Rogers case
Monday, November 19th, 2007Okay, I’ve seen the programme now. Interestingly, TVNZ has also posted the whole interview with Noel Rogers. Good on them for that, I think. As I’ve said all along, I think there was public interest in the videoed interview, for at least three reasons: 1. It allows us to better judge whether the Court of […]
Press Council review is out
Friday, November 16th, 2007The review of the operations of the Press Council has now been released. It’s long. There’s an extensive list of recommendations, and most of them look pretty sensible to me. They involve: — a much expanded budget and administration; — new fast-track complaints mechanisms (a mediation option involving a Chief Executive, and a rapid-consideration option […]
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