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本帖最后由 ko34446819 于 2017-5-19 14:01 编辑
What is defamation?
The publication of a statement about someone that lowers him or her in the estimation of right-thinking members of society generally, where no defence (usually truth, opinion, or qualified privilege) is available. The defences are dealt with below.
What are some examples?
Calling someone dishonest, corrupt, hypocritical, lazy, incompetent, criminal, unfaithful, or financially troubled. But beware! It includes what ordinary readers or viewers see or hear “between the lines”. The courts will look at the “sting” of the article. Proving the literal truth of the words won’t help if the sting is an inference.
For example, imagine I wrote that you often visited brothels. I may be able to prove this is true. You may visit brothels every day, making deliveries of wine. But that’s not what readers will think, is it? They will read between the lines and gather that I’m saying you frequently sleep with prostitutes. This is the “sting” of the article. It might be quite defamatory, especially if you are married or strongly religious.
Sometimes journalists and others try to get clever with words, hinting and implying things, thinking they are safe because they can prove the literal truth of the words. Wrong. What they have to prove is the meaning that ordinary readers take from their story.
Is a story safe if it doesn’t refer to people by name?
Not necessarily. Identification can also lie under the surface. Just because a story doesn’t mention someone by name doesn’t mean that person can’t sue for defamation. If ordinary readers familiar with the person understand the article to be referring to him or her, that will be enough.
For example, if a newspaper accuses a company of fraud or a government department of waste, it is possible that ordinary readers will take this to reflect on key decision-makers in those organisations.
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