Don't British and US law differ in this regard?
--jpgordon
On 5/5/05, slimvirgin(a)gmail.com <slimvirgin(a)gmail.com> wrote:
On 5/5/05, Delirium <delirium(a)hackish.org> wrote:
slimvirgin(a)gmail.com wrote:
This is perhaps an inappopriate discussion to have
in public because a
legal action has been threatened, but in brief, the fact that you
report, but do not endorse, a claim is not a defense in a libel
action. If you spread it, you spread it.
It actually is a defense, as long as you report who has alleged it, not
claim yourself it is true. Newspapers report on libel cases all the
time: "X has alleged Y about Z, and Z has sued X for libel in
response". The newspaper cannot be sued in that case simply because it
said "X has alleged Y about Z"---even if Y is false, the fact that X
alleged Y is true.
Newspapers can claim privilege in certain situations in most
jurisdictions. You can report that a libel action has been brought,
for example, so long as there are no publication restrictions. But if
your source Jane Doe telephones you and says: "John Smith is a
shoplifter," and you report that, even if your report distances your
newspaper from the allegation, it's still actionable.
Sarah
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