Category Archives: Privacy & the media

Anti far-right campaigners say Labor’s anti-doxing laws could be weaponised

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Group tells attorney general’s department that not all doxing is harmful and therefore bad or undesirable

Anti-fascist research group the White Rose Society has warned the Australian government that its push for new anti-doxing laws are a “quick fix” for complex problems that could be weaponised against reporting and have negative consequences for society.

In March the attorney general, Mark Dreyfus, announced consultation for new laws that would include a right to sue for serious invasion of privacy and a criminal offence of doxing.

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Prince Harry’s victory puts the spotlight back on nervous newspapers

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The Duke of Sussex’s determination to have his day in court over phone hacking has once again lifted the lid on media standards

Prince Harry’s victory against the Daily Mirror has placed phone hacking and media standards back under the spotlight, 11 years after the conclusion of the Leveson inquiry.

While millions of pounds have been paid out to victims of phone hacking in the intervening years, they were largely via out-of-court settlements, which kept a lid on the reputational damage to the perpetrators.

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Prince Harry should get just £500 in phone-hacking case, argues publisher

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Mirror Group Newspapers says it has ‘sympathy’ for royal but he has no ‘hard evidence’, court told

Prince Harry should receive only £500 in damages at the end of his phone-hacking trial, Mirror Group Newspapers has argued at the high court.

The Duke of Sussex wants a judge to award him more than £200,000 over allegations that he was the victim of illegal activity by journalists working for the Mirror, the Sunday Mirror and the People.

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Private investigator tells phone-hacking trial of threat to ‘destroy’ him

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Paul Hawkes says claims that he hacked Hugh Grant’s emails on behalf of Daily Mirror are ‘fantastical'

Press reform campaigners threatened to “destroy” a private investigator because he refused to help their campaign against newspaper groups, it has been alleged at the high court.

Paul Hawkes, a veteran private investigator, said claims that he hacked Hugh Grant’s emails on behalf of the Daily Mirror were “fantastical” and “made-up”. After being presented with a supposed invoice for the work, Hawkes mocked the idea he would have carried out such a serious act for such a small sum, telling the court: “You’re saying I got it hacked by a third party for £150? Come on!”

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Consumer advocates reject media calls to preserve exemptions to Australian privacy law

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Centre for Responsible Technology ‘supportive’ of proposed reforms, calling them the ‘first significant upgrade of privacy laws in four decades’

Consumer digital rights advocates have rejected media companies’ call to preserve their exemption to privacy law, warning that commercial models should not be put ahead of public interest.

Peter Lewis, the director of the Australia Institute’s Centre for Responsible Technology, said it was “disappointing” that the Right to Know coalition “set up with the laudable goal of protecting journalists and whistleblowers is now being deployed to prosecute Big Media’s business interests at the expense of the public they purport to serve”.

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Leo Varadkar nightclub footage triggers privacy debate in Ireland

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Leaked clip of deputy leader also fuels moves to tighten social media regulation

A video of Leo Varadkar, Ireland’s tánaiste, socialising in a nightclub has triggered a debate about the right to privacy and regulation of social media.

The brief clip of the deputy prime minister was clandestinely recorded in a Dublin nightclub earlier this month and has racked up millions of views on multiple platforms.

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Phone hacking: Mirror Group to pay damages to ex-partner of Kerry Katona

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David Cunningham wins apology and ‘substantial’ damages over articles published in 2005 and 2006

A former partner of Kerry Katona has won an apology for phone hacking and “substantial” damages from the publisher of the Mirror.

David Cunningham, an engineer, brought a claim against Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN), which also publishes the People and the Sunday Mirror, over 36 articles published in 2005 and 2006 while he was in a relationship with the former Atomic Kitten singer.

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How Meghan took personal risks in Mail on Sunday privacy victory

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Analysis: Duchess of Sussex says she faced ‘deception, intimidation and calculated attacks’ and suffered a miscarriage

The privacy victory over the Mail on Sunday has seemingly exacted a toll on the Duchess of Sussex, who in vigorously pursuing the case went far further than any other present-day royal in taking on the tabloid culture.

The court of appeal stressed “no expense” was spared in fighting and defending the legal action over publication of extensive extracts of her private letter to her estranged father. As losers, Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL), publishers of the newspaper and Mail Online, will bear the brunt.

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‘Palace Four’ drawn into Meghan’s dispute with Associated Newspapers

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Ex-employees of royal couple could shed light on drafting of letter to Thomas Markle, high court hears

Four former employees of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex could have evidence shedding light on the circumstances of Meghan’s letter to her estranged father, the high court has heard.

Any role of the so-called “Palace Four” required further investigation, and was one of the reasons the duchess’s privacy action against the Mail on Sunday should proceed to a full trial, the newspaper’s publishers argued.

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Concern over French bill that cracks down on photos identifying police

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Journalists call for removal of clause that would ban footage disseminated ‘with intent to harm’ officers

A proposed bill in France that would make it illegal to disseminate photographs or videos identifying police and gendarmes “with intent to harm” is a danger to press freedom, critics have warned.

The measure comes amid growing concern about allegations of police violence in the country. It is outlined in draft global security legislation to be presented to the Assemblée Nationale next week.

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Meghan wins court bid to keep friends’ identities secret

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Court rules in favour of Duchess of Sussex in latest stage of legal action against Associated Newspapers

The Duchess of Sussex has won a high court bid to keep secret the identities of five friends who gave anonymous interviews to a US celebrity magazine, in the latest stage of her legal action against the owner of the Mail on Sunday.

Meghan is suing Associated Newspapers, the publisher of the Mail on Sunday and Mail Online, over an article that reproduced parts of a “private and confidential” handwritten letter she sent to her estranged father, Thomas Markle, in August 2018.

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Meghan’s friends entitled to ‘super-charged confidentiality’, high court told

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Duchess of Sussex suing owner of Mail on Sunday and Mail Online in privacy battle

Lawyers for the Duchess of Sussex have claimed five female friends who spoke anonymously to a US magazine to defend her against British tabloid bullying are entitled to a “super-charged right of confidentiality” as she fought to protect their identities in her privacy battle against the Mail on Sunday.

Forcing her to make public their names was an “unacceptable price to pay” for pursuing her legal action over publication of extracts from a private letter she wrote to her estranged father, Thomas Markle, 75, the high court in London heard.

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Meghan privacy claim against Mail on Sunday owner ‘continues’ despite setback

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Judge rules part of Duchess of Sussex’s case against Associated Newspapers be struck out

Lawyers for the Duchess of Sussex have insisted her privacy claim against the publishers of the Mail on Sunday (MoS) will continue after she was dealt an initial blow when a judge ruled that part of her case should be struck out.

Lawyers for Associated Newspapers had argued last month against elements including that some words and sentences from a letter by Meghan to her estranged father, Thomas Markle, had been “dishonestly” cut out before publication in order to paint a misleading picture of the relationship between the two.

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Mail publisher had agenda of ‘offensive’ stories about Meghan, court told

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Duchess sues publisher of British newspapers over use of letter to father Thomas Markle

A newspaper was accused of “stirring up” issues between the Duchess of Sussex and her estranged father, Thomas Markle, then using it to justify publishing a “private and confidential” letter, a court heard.

Lawyers representing Meghan said she was distressed at the realisation that Associated Newspapers had an agenda of “intrusive and offensive” stories about her, a judge was told.

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Politicians condemn press intrusion after Caroline Flack’s death

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ITV says Sunday’s Love Island will not be broadcast as calls mount for regulation of traditional and social media

Politicians have condemned press intrusion, calling for more regulation of both traditional and social media after the death of TV presenter Caroline Flack.

The former Love Island presenter is understood to have taken her own life on Saturday at her home in Islington, London. She had been charged with assaulting her partner and was due to stand trial in several weeks’ time.

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Harry and Meghan in new privacy row – just hours after Canada reunion

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Couple threaten legal action over press pictures of Duchess of Sussex and baby Archie

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex began their new lives in Canada by firing a warning shot across the bows of the media over paparazzi photographs they said were taken without consent.

Within hours of Prince Harry touching down in Vancouver to join Meghan and their baby son, Archie, the couple’s lawyers were threatening legal action over pictures taken of the Duchess of Sussex while out for a stroll.

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‘Rogue royals’? Pundits furious over Harry and Meghan’s step back

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Announcement by pair that they are stepping back from public life brings hysterical response

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s decision to step back from public life has provoked vitriolic attacks on the couple and hyperbolic predictions on what it could mean for the monarchy.

The announcement came after Prince Harry and Meghan criticised media intrusion and launched legal action against the Mail on Sunday. This, along with reports that the couple’s decision has upset the Queen, appears to have fuelled the ferocity of the reaction.

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Royal experts question wisdom of Harry and Meghan documentary

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Couple’s interview about impact of press intrusion could ‘just feed media machine’

The decision by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle to agree to a highly emotional TV interview about their treatment at the hands of the press could open them up to further damaging headlines, according to PR experts and royal watchers.

In the ITV documentary, Harry & Meghan: An African Journey, Harry appeared to give credence to long-standing rumours of a rift with William when he admitted the brothers had “good days and bad days” and that they were following different paths.

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Prince Harry: ‘My mother’s death is wound that festers’

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Duke of Sussex reveals emotional toll of following in footsteps of Diana, Princess of Wales

The Duke of Sussex has described the emotional impact of walking in his mother’s footsteps, and how dealing with her death is a “wound that festers”, in a new ITV documentary.

In an interview with ITV News at Ten anchor Tom Bradby, Prince Harry was asked how he felt retracing the steps of Diana, Princess of Wales, during the recent southern Africa tour with the Duchess of Sussex, 22 years after his mother’s death.

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Prince Harry’s lawsuit against tabloids could backfire, commentators claim

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Duke of Sussex’s legal action against Sun and Daily Mirror over alleged phone hacking takes attack on press up a level

Prince Harry’s move to take legal action against tabloids for alleged phone hacking is part of the royal’s ramped-up aggressive PR approach designed to send a message to the media, according to commentators.

It emerged on Friday night that the Duke of Sussex – who released a strongly worded attack on the British media for their treatment of his wife, Meghan, earlier this week – has issued legal proceedings against the owners of the Sun and the Daily Mirror.

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