Data Privacy in the United States
By Mark Sableman* Introduction Since the 1960s, Americans have been warned that the development of intrusive technologies was creating a need for new legal protection of information (data) privacy. In works such as Alan F. Weston’s Privacy and Freedom and Arthur R. Miller’s The Assault on Privacy, dire warnings were issued about the developing surveillance…
Press Regulation in the United Kingdom: Where Things Stand at Present and the Clouds on the Horizon
By David Hooper* Overview Following various tabloid scandals concerning the victims of murder cases and the treatment of innocent suspects or witnesses together with the exposés of the extent of phone hacking published in the Guardian of 9 July 2009 and the New York Times of 1 September 2010, a committee was set up under…
Developments in Ireland
By Karyn Harty and Evelyn O’Donnell* 1. What’s the latest in Ireland? 1.1 The Defamation Act, 2009 has been in force for 5 years and is now due a 5 year statutory review, of which there is as yet no sign. The primary issues facing publishers remain the level of damages and the fact that…
Restrıctıon of Freedom of Press Under Turkısh Medıa Law
By Nazli Selek* Turkish media law is regulated by several different legislation and the main stipulations are made under the following Codes. 1. Turkish Press Law with reference 5187. (“TPL”) 2. Turkish Radio and Televison Law with reference 6112 (“TRTL”) 3. Regulation of Publications on the Internet and Combating Crimes Committed by Means of Such…
Speech Offences in England and Wales
By Elizabeth Morley* Whilst it has not always been incorporated into statue, the importance of freedom of expression is, and generally always has been, respected in the UK. However, that does not mean that it has not also always been subject to some forms of restriction, for example, by laws against defamation, blasphemy, obscenity, treason…
Hate Speech Under German Law
By Dr. Ralph Oliver Graef* A. Starting Point: Definition of “Hate Speech” The term “hate speech”, coined in the United States, has become established in Germany (Administrative Court of Appeals (OVG), decision dated November 29, 2013, case no. 2 KO 185/09). In German-speaking countries the term is not a legal term, but rather a political…
Canada: A Middle Ground on Hate Speech?
By Paul B. Schabas* Canada’s approach to the regulation of hate speech is, arguably, a middle ground between the more stringent prohibitions seen in international law, and the very permissive approach seen in the United States. Canada’s laws respect the importance of freedom of expression, but temper those rights by prohibiting hate speech where it…
To Confront the Assassin’s Veto, or to Ratify it?
By Robert Corn-Revere* The morning of January 7, 2015, Cherif and Said Kouachi, two brothers deeply offended by satirical drawings of the Muslim prophet Mohammad published in the French weekly newspaper Charlie Hebdo, exacted their own punishment for perceived blasphemy. They forced their way into a staff meeting in the newspaper’s offices and massacred twelve…
Why Reading The First Amendment Isn’t Easy
By Professor Burt Neuborne* Reading the First Amendment isn’t easy. Consider the text: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion,or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress…
MLRC Bulletin 2015 Issue 2
Download Publication Why Reading The First Amendment Isn’t EasyBy Professor Burt Neuborne To Confront The Assassin’s Veto, Or To Ratify It?By Robert Corn-Revere Hate Speech Under German LawBy Dr. Ralph Oliver Graef Canada: A Middle Ground On Hate Speech?By Paul B. Schabas Speech Offences In England And WalesBy Elizabeth Morley Restriction Of Freedom Of Press…