JOUR 101 Lecture Notes - Lecture 7: Judge Smith, Qualified Privilege
JRNL101.07
Defamation
- Consequences of defamation:
o Undermine reputation of person claiming to have been defamed
o Financial cost to company and self if found guilty
o Cost to reputation of organisation and self
o Balance between need to protect reputation and freedom of speech
Definitions
- Desiged to potet a idiiduals eputatio
- Libel (written or printed) leaves a trail
- Slander (spoken) also leaves a trail (radio, television, smart phones, SMS, etc. even if
wiped from device)
o The distinction between the various forms was abandoned with the national
uniform defamation legislation in 2006
- Calu hage falsel ad aliiousl ith soethig iial o diseputale …
Shorter Oxford Dictionary).
Origins of defamation
- A tort (civil or common law jurisdiction)
- Outcomes:
o Damages
o Injunction
- Criminal law
o Heard before a judge/ judge and jury
o Forum shopping
What does defamation cover?
- (a) an article, report or advertisement or other thing communicated by means of a
newspaper, magazine or other periodical
- (b) a program, report, advertisement or other thing communicated by means of
television, radio, the internet or any other form of electronic communication
- (c) a letter, note or other writing
- (d) a picture, gesture or oral utterance
- (e) any other thing by means of which something may be communicated to a person
- Electronic communication includes communication of information in the form of
data, text, images or sound (or any combination of these) by means of guided or
unguided electromagnetic energy or both
Critical questions
- Pearson
o Is the material I am about to publish defamatory?
o Is there a defence available?
- Butler and Rodrick
o Is the matter complained of capable of conveying the alleged imputation to
the ordinary, reasonable reader/ listener/ viewer?
o Are those imputations capable of defaming the plaintiff?
B & ‘s additioal uestios
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
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