Defamation/Slander/Libel

Defamation:

• Lowering someone in the estimation of right thinking people
• Cause a person to be shunned or avoided
• Disparage them in their business, trade or profession
• Expose them to hatred, ridicule or contempt

Defamation occurs in two different forms: Libel & Slander

Libel is a physical form of defamation e.g written

Slander is the spoken form of defamation e.g speech/said in an argument

When someone is suing for libel, there are three areas they have to identify :

•the publication in question is defamatory
•the publication in question refers to him/her and therefore is identifying him
•the publication has been published to the public eye

The person suing for libel doesn't actually have to prove the statement/publication is false nor does he/she have to prove they have suffered a loss of earnings, they simply have to prove that the statement has the potential or has caused their reputation to suffer as a result of the publication.

Defence against Defamation:

• Fair Comment - an opinion that is clearly recognised as an opinion where the subject commented on is in the public’s interest
• Justification - if the publication states facts and the matter must be proved true ‘on the balance of probabilities’
• Absolute Privilege - comes under law, to report this the journalist must be fair (balanced) and accurate (no substantial inaccuracies)
• Qualified Privilege - facts are thought to be freely known in the public interest (for example a press release)
• Accord & Satisfaction - an apology or a correction that has been accepted by the claimant

Copyright

Simply put copyright is protecting the physical expression of ideas. If one gives an idea or concept a physical form it is immediately protected, the individual in question doesn't need to register/claim copyright as it is automatic. Copyright in layman terms is similar to the offence of theft, it is the act of making beneficial use of somebody else's work without his or her permission.

The UK Copyright Service states that : "The law gives the creators of literary, dramatic, musical, artistic works, sound recordings, broadcasts, films and typographical arrangement of published editions, rights to control the ways in which their material may be used.
The rights cover; broadcast and public performance, copying, adapting, issuing, renting and lending copies to the public.
In many cases, the creator will also have the right to be identified as the author and to object to distortions of his work.
International conventions give protection in most countries, subject to national laws."

Types of work protected under copyright laws:

Literary: song lyrics, manuscripts, manuals, computer programs, commercial documents, leaflets, newsletters & articles etc.
Dramatic: plays, dance, etc.
Musical: recordings and score.
Artistic: photography, painting, sculptures, architecture, technical drawings/diagrams, maps, logos.
Typographical arrangement of published editions: magazines, periodicals, etc.
Sound recording: may be recordings of other copyright works, e.g. musical and literary.
Films: broadcasts and cable programmes.

Fair Dealing, is the only defence against the offence of infringement of copyright law. Fair Dealing covers a set of possible defences against an infringement of copyright law. In the UK Under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (CDPA), fair dealing is limited to the following purposes: research and private study (both must be non-commercial), criticism, review, and news reporting (sections 29, 30, 178).

There is no defence for the use of photographs. The image itself belongs and is copyrighted to the photographer who took the image and cannot be used without his/her permission. The lifting of pictures between newspapers is extremely common, there is no copyright in news story, though the actual words (especially quotes and even more especially bits of video, or clips of interviews) are protected by copyright. The reason is that the actual way in which the news story is written is the work of the journalist, as are the actual words in the quotes and as is the interview which may have been captured on film.