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Media trends digest – 2006

Internet still an international defamation minefield (15 August)

When Philip Ruddock called for uniform defamation laws across Australia six months ago, confusion and dilemmas were supposed to decrease. For web publishers, it was only the beginning.

Half a year after Australia’s brand new uniform defamation laws, there might still be more problems for internet authors than for traditional media outlets.

Most obviously, the speed with which people can access stories is far greater than an traditional newspaper, resulting in instant, worldwide distribution. Regardless of the source of the information, people can access information internationally, increasing the potential for defamation suits far from the original publication.

The case that set this precedent, the 2002 example of Joseph Gutnick, dealt with a negative article about him that appeared in Barron, the Dow Jones Index’s business magazine. Although the ISP was located in New Jersey, USA, 140 people downloaded the article down under. This, Gutnick claimed, was reason enough to sue within Australia.

The courts agreed, resulting in the first internet-based Australian defamation case sourced from an American publication.

Additionally, web publishers are generally smaller than their ink counterparts. This means they have fewer lawyers ready to combat possible suits.

This fear of litigation might result in a watered down version of events on the web because small companies are scared of taking risks on their websites.

On the other hand, publishers might favour publishing risky material, but only about those who cannot afford defamation suits: the poor and marginalised members of society.

Although international material might mean trouble for Aussie web publishers, domestic worries are off many of their minds. New legislation means that large companies (with more than ten employees) can no longer sue, decreasing large corporations “bullying” individuals.

Also to web publishers’ benefit, contextual truth can be used as a defence, expanding publishers’ ability to justify specific imputations separate from those that are defamatory.

Still, if Gutnick is any indication of things to come on the international front, Australian web publishers might think twice, or three, or four, or five times, about what they decide to put on the web.

By Lindsay Shoff

More reading

See the new defamation laws all spelled out

Get some advice on libel insurance for web publishers

New defamation laws: how far have we come?

Read all about the Gutnick case

"Camps of critics" of web publishing

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