By MARK PEARSON Follow @Journlaw
We are honoured to be hosting acclaimed international media law expert Dr David Goldberg for two seminars examining the law and ethics of media use of drones early next month (November 3 and 4).
Dr Goldberg was co-author (with the ABC’s Mark Corcoran and Oxford’s Robert G. Picard) of the Oxford Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism report ‘Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems and Journalism’ in June, 2013.
Former ABC Foreign Correspondent reporter (now with ABC News Online) Mark Corcoran and The Australian’s legal affairs editor Chris Merritt form a panel responding to Dr Goldberg’s symposium address at South Bank in Brisbane on November 4.
Former Gold Coast Bulletin editor (now Griffith University communications and marketing director) Dean Gould and I will be panellists for the Friends of the Library event at Griffith’s Gold Coast campus on November 3.
Attendance at both events is free, but registration is required at the links detailed here for the Brisbane event (Nov 4) and here for the Gold Coast event (Nov 3). Both presentations start at 6pm, with guests asked to arrive from 5.15pm for the Brisbane event and from 5.30pm for the Gold Coast presentation.
The Brisbane symposium is hosted by the Griffith Centre for Cultural Research (in conjunction with the Socio-Legal Research Centre) and is the opening function for Griffith Journalism’s student coverage of the G20 summit from its Media Centre in South Bank.
Dr Goldberg is co-editor (with Gavin Sutter and Ian Walden) of Oxford University Press’s Media Law and Practice (London, 2009). He is also Adjunct Associate Professor of Law at Southwestern Law School, Los Angeles and Honorary Visiting Senior Fellow, Institute of Computer and Communications Law, Queen Mary College, University of London.
‘Drones’— which Dr Goldberg prefers to call ‘remotely piloted aircraft’ (RPAs) — are evolving from predominantly military to civilian applications. The presentations focus exclusively on using RPAs for newsgathering, aka ‘drone journalism’ or, ‘dronalism’.
As Dr Goldberg explains, “Cheap, light and portable, RPAs can easily be moved to locations where reporting needs to take place or production is most desirable and, crucially, can keep journalists safe.
“In this context, RPAs are simply 21st Century aerial camera platforms.
“However, this category of use by mainstream media and citizen journalists is being frustrated by regulatory and legal restrictions as well as so-called ‘ethical’ gaps and challenges.”
In the presentations, he urges that the public’s right to receive information from journalists exercising the rights involved in carrying out the profession of reporting—and the concomitant right to access communications technologies in order to do so — should permit the use of RPAs in this context in principle and trump counter-claims, not least those advanced by the pro-privacy lobby.
Full details of the events are as follows:
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From Glasgow to Gold Coast: The Challenges of Drone Journalism – Presented by Friends of the Library
(This event precedes the Drones Symposium at Southbank on Tuesday November 4)
The Friends of the Library presentation with Dr David Goldberg, media law, ethics, privacy and free information expert will discuss drone technology focusing on media usage in major events like the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.
To register your attendance for this free event, please click on the below link and follow the steps http://events.griffith.edu.au/dronejournalism
Date: Monday November 3, 2014
Time: 5:30pm doors open and presentation begins at 6:00pm
Where: Learning Commons (G11), Room 4.29, Griffith University Gold Coast Campus, Parklands Drive Southport, QLD 4222
RSVP: Tuesday October 28, 2014
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Drones, Privacy and Journalism – Public Symposium
The Griffith Centre for Cultural Research (GCCR) welcomes media, law, ethics and free information expert Dr David Goldberg to discuss drone technology, focusing on media usage in major news events. Special guest panelists include Mark Corcoran, a respected reporter and producer for the ABC’s ‘Foreign Correspondent’ and Chris Merritt, Legal Affairs editor for The Australian.
Date: Tuesday November 4, 2014
Venue: Level 7, Webb Centre, Griffith University South Bank campus
Time: 5:15pm for refreshments – commencing at 6:00pm
RSVP: To Kim Podger via email k.podger@griffith.edu.au
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© Mark Pearson 2014
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.
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