Media professionals and media organisations operate within a framework of both legal obligations and ethical expectations. Understanding the distinction between these two registers — and the specific issues that arise within each — is essential for Unit 4.
| Dimension | Legal Issues | Ethical Issues |
|---|---|---|
| Source | Legislation, common law, court decisions | Professional codes of conduct, community standards, moral philosophy |
| Enforcement | Courts, regulatory bodies, police | Professional bodies, public opinion, editorial oversight |
| Consequence | Fines, damages, injunctions, imprisonment | Reputation damage, editorial sanction, professional exclusion |
| Scope | What is prohibited | What is responsible and appropriate |
Something can be legal but unethical (e.g. publishing private grief photographs of a person who has not consented but has no legal protection). Something can be illegal but widely considered ethically acceptable in some contexts (e.g. publishing classified documents exposing government wrongdoing — see WikiLeaks, Edward Snowden).
Defamation law protects individuals from false statements of fact that damage their reputation:
- Published material that is factually incorrect and harmful to reputation may give rise to a defamation claim
- Defences include: truth (justification), honest opinion (previously called ‘fair comment’), and public interest
- Australia: unified national Defamation Act (2005, amended 2021) — added public interest defence and ‘serious harm’ threshold
Australian law provides limited privacy protections in media contexts:
- No general tort of invasion of privacy in most Australian jurisdictions
- Privacy Act 1988 applies to some media organisations (those with annual turnover over $3M)
- Courts have used breach of confidence and copyright law to provide limited protection
- Ethical codes often provide stronger privacy protections than law
Media producers must not reproduce copyrighted material without permission:
- Copyright protects films, photographs, music, written works, and broadcasts
- ‘Fair dealing’ exception allows use for news reporting, criticism/review, and research
- User-generated content that incorporates copyrighted material (music, clips) may constitute infringement
Publishing material that prejudices a fair trial or interferes with judicial proceedings:
- Reporting on ongoing criminal trials can prejudice jury decisions
- Sub judice rule: once charges are laid, extensive pre-trial coverage of the accused’s alleged conduct may be contemptuous
VCAA FOCUS: Know the difference between legal issues (defamation, copyright, contempt) and ethical issues (source protection, consent, accuracy, conflict of interest). Be able to explain each with a specific example and discuss the tension between press freedom and the ethical/legal obligation in question.
EXAM TIP: The most sophisticated responses to questions about ethical and legal issues acknowledge the tensions involved — cases where legal compliance does not resolve the ethical question, or where ethical obligations conflict with each other. Name the specific code or law involved and use a real example to ground your argument.
