Tag Archives: social media risk

May 11, 2023 · 3:50 pm

Former ombudsman offers insights into defamation #MLGriff

A former ombudsman who sued a major newspaper for defamation offers his insights into the experience in Episode #009 of our occasional Griffith University SMALL podcast – Social Media and Law Livestream.

Griffith University Media Law students Emily Soccol and Anna Swann interview Professor John McMillan AO about his successful defamation action against the Canberra Times in 2016.

Mr McMillan has held positions of Commonwealth Ombudsman, Integrity Commissioner for the Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity, Australian Information Commissioner, NSW Ombudsman and a member of the Australian Copyright Tribunal.

He is also a legal consultant and an Emeritus Professor at the Australian National University. Drawing on his expertise over a five decade career, Professor McMillan offers his perspective on defamation laws and the legal risks associated with publishing damaging material.

The case was settled after mediation. The court judgment on the imputations can be viewed at https://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/cases/act/ACTSC/2016/286.html. [McMillan v The Federal Capital Press of Australia Pty Ltd [2016] ACTSC 286 (22 September 2016) ]

[Listen here: 14:26 min].

If you are a communication professional wanting to study in this area, please consider enrolling in our online courses Social Media Law and Risk Management (postgraduate, fully online) or Media Law (undergraduate, available online or on campus).

Disclaimer: While I write about media law and ethics, nothing here should be construed as legal advice. I am an academic, not a lawyer. My only advice is that you consult a lawyer before taking any legal risks.

© Mark Pearson 2023 – the moral right of the author has been asserted.

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Filed under blogging, communication, contempt of court, defamation, Internet, journalism, journalism education, libel, media law, media literacy, online education, open justice, podcast, public relations, reflective practice, risk, risk management, social media, social media law, strategic communication, sub judice, suppression, Whistleblowing

Tagged as AJ Brown, Australian media, communication education, communication law, confidential sources, defamation, free expression, freedom to communicate, international law, journalism, journalism education, Journalist's guide to media law, law, mark pearson, media, media law, podcast, privacy, social media, social media law, social media law podcast, social media risk, social media risk and law, Transparency International, whistleblowers

June 6, 2022 · 12:06 pm

Retired magistrate offers advice to court reporters #MLGriff

By MARK PEARSON Follow @Journlaw

Decades of experience as a magistrate and lawyer inform the advice offered to court reporters in Episode #008 of our occasional Griffith University SMALL podcast – Social Media and Law Livestream.

Retired magistrate Antoine Bloemen. Photo: Anne Bloemen.

Griffith University Media Law student Elizabeth Heseltine interviews retired Western Australian magistrate Antoine Bloemen about the traps faced by novice court reporters, with some fascinating examples.

He draws upon his 40 years of expertise as a legal professional to share his insights into courtroom etiquette and the potential legal ramifications of a poorly researched and written article [Listen here: 14:26 min].

© Mark Pearson 2022 – the moral right of the author has been asserted.

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May 26, 2022 · 10:52 am

Podcast offers rare inside view of FOI process

By MARK PEARSON Follow @Journlaw

Episode #007 of our occasional Griffith University SMALL podcast – Social Media and Law Livestream – looks at Freedom of Information processes from a different perspective – that of a lawyer managing the Commonwealth Government’s FOI approvals and exemptions.

Griffith University Media Law student Mia Durnan interviews Senior Lawyer Rodney Durnan about Freedom of Information laws (FOI); covering basic topics like ‘what is FOI?’, the process of an application, some of the exemptions that can apply and how the FOI laws interact with privacy laws from a practical perspective.

Mr Durnan is part of In-House Counsel for a large Federal Government agency.

With more than 15 years of experience, he and his team specialise in administrative law which includes Freedom of Information and Privacy. [15:25 min] Find Mia’s interview here.

© Mark Pearson 2022 – the moral right of the author has been asserted.

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March 8, 2022 · 2:21 pm

Our SMALL podcast guest: Whistleblower expert Professor AJ Brown

By MARK PEARSON Follow @Journlaw

In episode #006 of our occasional SMALL podcast – Social Media and Law Livestream – I speak with academic whistleblowing expert Professor A J Brown.

Professor Brown is leader of the Centre for Governance and Public Policy’s public integrity and anti-corruption research program in Griffith University’s School of Government and International Relations.

He is on the global board of the world anti-corruption organisation Transparency International and a leading expert on public interest whistleblowing. He talks about the legal framework for whistleblowers and the implications for journalists and their confidential sources. Find our interview here [21:49min].

© Mark Pearson 2022 – the moral right of the author has been asserted.

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February 23, 2022 · 12:52 pm

Latest SMALL podcast gets Amy Remeikis’ take on social media law

By MARK PEARSON Follow @Journlaw

Episode #005 of our occasional SMALL podcast – Social Media and Law Livestream – features Guardian Australia political reporter Amy Remeikis talking media law with tutor Susan Grantham.

From court and police rounds, to reporting on Australian federal politicians, Amy (pictured below) discusses how she navigates legal risks while reporting in a wired world.

© Mark Pearson 2022 – the moral right of the author has been asserted.

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Tagged as ABC, Amy Remeikis, Australian media, communication education, communication law, defamation, Dylan Voller, free expression, freedom to communicate, Guardian Australia, international law, journalism, journalism education, Journalist's guide to media law, law, mark pearson, media, media law, podcast, privacy, risk management, social media, social media law, social media law podcast, social media risk, social media risk and law, susan grantham

December 16, 2021 · 11:47 am

Latest SMALL podcast looks at Israel Folau matter

By MARK PEARSON Follow @Journlaw

Episode #004 of our occasional SMALL podcast – Social Media and Law Livestream – is now available for listening.

This latest episode [15:00 mins] – published on The Source News – is hosted by Griffith University Media Law student Brandon McMahon.

Brandon talks with Attwood Marshall lawyer Laura Dolan about the discrimination, religious freedom, unfair dismissal and contract dimensions of the case involving former Test rugby union player Israel Folau and his social media posts. [SMALL #004].

Enjoy!

© Mark Pearson 2021 – the moral right of the author has been asserted.

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Tagged as ABC, ABC Landline, ABC News, Amy Sauvarin, Attwood Marshall, Australian media, Brandon McMahon, Camille Chorley, communication education, communication law, defamation, discrimination, free expression, freedom to communicate, international law, Israel Folau, John Taylor, journalism, journalism education, Journalist's guide to media law, Laura Dolan, law, mark pearson, media, media law, podcast, privacy, religious freedom, risk management, social media, social media law, social media law podcast, social media risk, social media risk and law, susan grantham, Uli Schmetzer, unfair dismissal

December 6, 2021 · 11:05 am

Two more SMALL podcasts on our Social Media And Law Livestream

By MARK PEARSON Follow @Journlaw

Episodes #002 and #003 of our occasional SMALL podcast – Social Media and Law Livestream – are now available for listening.

These episodes – published on The Source News – are hosted by Media Law students Amy Sauvarin and Camille Chorley.

In Episode #002 [16:37 mins], Amy chats with veteran journalist and author Uli Schmetzer about freedom of expression and his encounters with censorship over his four decade career as a foreign correspondent. For more information on his books and reportage, see http://www.uli-schmetzer.com/index.html.

In Episode #003 [20 mins], Camille talks with ABC Landline producer and ABC News cadet trainer John Taylor about free expression issues in foreign correspondence, court reporting, social media and training journalists in media law. See his bio at https://www.abc.net.au/news/john-taylor/167072.

Enjoy!

© Mark Pearson 2021 – the moral right of the author has been asserted.

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Tagged as ABC, ABC Landline, ABC News, Amy Sauvarin, Australian media, Camille Chorley, communication education, communication law, defamation, free expression, freedom to communicate, international law, John Taylor, journalism, journalism education, Journalist's guide to media law, law, mark pearson, media, media law, podcast, privacy, risk management, social media, social media law, social media law podcast, social media risk, social media risk and law, susan grantham, Uli Schmetzer

November 8, 2021 · 4:00 pm

Welcome to our SMALL podcast – Social Media And Law Livestream

By MARK PEARSON Follow @Journlaw

The first episode of our occasional SMALL podcast – Social Media and Law Livestream – is now available for listening.

In this first 11 minute episode – hosted on The Source News – I interview co-author Dr Susan Grantham about issues in social media risk and the law covered in our new book, Social Media Risk and the Law – A Guide for Global Communicators, published in September 2021 by Routledge.

We discuss the intersection of social media risk theory and the law, the tools available to assess social media risk, the point at which brand and reputation damage become defamatory, the role of stakeholder theory in assessing social media risk, and the legal risks for employees who use their private social media channels to criticise their organisations.

We plan to feature a wide variety of short interviews with social media law experts on a range of topics over coming weeks and months, with many of the interviews conducted by students undertaking our media law and social media law classes.

SMALL podcast #001 – Dr Susan Grantham – ‘Social media risk and the law’ – interviewed by Mark Pearson [11 min]

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Tagged as Australian media, communication education, communication law, defamation, free expression, freedom to communicate, international law, journalism, journalism education, Journalist's guide to media law, law, mark pearson, media, media law, podcast, privacy, risk management, social media, social media law, social media law podcast, social media risk, social media risk and law, susan grantham

October 7, 2021 · 11:36 am

Ten steps for assessing your social media risk

By MARK PEARSON Follow @Journlaw

Colleague Susan Grantham and I have just co-written a new book, Social Media Risk and the Law – A Guide for Global Communicators, published in September 2021 by Routledge.

It presents a stakeholder-oriented approach to risk minimisation designed to help social media managers and moderators anticipate, identify, address and balance these dangers and opportunities.

As part of its launch we have written a blog on the Routledge site about the importance of understanding how to engage with online and social media conversations. We recommend ten steps to best establish a general social media legal risk assessment that applies to your overall professional social media use and the way it interacts with your organization’s policies and processes. You can find our blog on the ten steps here. Enjoy!

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Filed under censorship, communication, defamation, First Amendment, free expression, intellectual property, Internet, journalism, journalism education, libel, media ethics, Media freedom, media law, media literacy, Media regulation, national security, open justice, Press freedom, Privacy, public relations, reflective practice, risk, risk management, social media, sub judice, suppression

Tagged as Australian media, communication education, communication law, defamation, free expression, freedom to communicate, international law, journalism, journalism education, Journalist's guide to media law, law, mark pearson, media, media law, privacy, risk management, social media, social media law, social media risk, social media risk and law, susan grantham

April 9, 2021 · 2:20 pm

How to stay out of court while using social media in business

By MARK PEARSON Follow @Journlaw

Social media offers unlimited opportunities, but professional communicators need effective risk analysis strategies to assess potential legal hazards when posting or hosting content.

A stakeholder-oriented approach to risk minimisation can help social media managers and moderators anticipate, identify, address and balance these dangers and opportunities.

In our new book, colleague Susan Grantham and I have identified ten key questions an organisation might ask in establishing its level of social media legal exposure.

I review these ten questions and a further five specific questions for analysing specific social media legal risks in my latest blog in Griffith University’s Professional Learning Hub’s Thought Leadership series here.

If you are a communication professional wanting to study in this area, please consider enrolling in our online courses Social Media Law and Risk Management (postgraduate) or Media Law (undergraduate).

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