Media Law and Ethics: Privacy and Confidentiality

Privacy and Confidentiality in the UK is both good and bad. It is good in the sense that we have amazing privacy laws within the UK, which is in a sense quite reassuring for the public. However, for the budding journalist, the issue of privacy can often prove somewhat of an Everest obstacle.

List the notes.

Breach of Confidentiality And Secrecy

-State Secrets: This covers the Official Secrets Act. Problems for journalists are that they could inadvertantly divulge information about the military through filming etc, which could be used by an enemy.

-Commercial Secrets: Common Law Confidentiality.

-Privacy: Human Rights Act Section 8 'normal enjoyment of family life'.

Breach of Confidence is information which is unfairly passed on that:

-has the "necessary quality of confidence" - not just heresy.

-the individual would expect the person being told to keep to themselves.

-there was no permission to pass on.

-will cause detriment to the person who gave the information.

-If any of the above criteria is not met then there is no breach of confidence.

Gagging Clauses in Employment Contracts

If an individual is employed by someone or a company then they owe their employer a "duty of confidence". This stands even if there is no agreement to this within the contract, or even if there is no contract of employment.

An employee can be dismissed without compensation if they break a gagging clause. The public interest defence is very limited when complaints can be dealt with internally.

Professional Confidentiality

Information shared with a doctor should remain confidential unless the doctor has been given permission by the patient to divulge the confidential information. If an individual puts out confidential information about a person or a company then they are in 'breach of confidence'.

If a journalist publishes confidential information they have obtained then they have committed the crime of 'third party breach of confidence'.

Confidentiality in UK law is a residual right.

Section 8 of Human Rights Act (Family Life Privacy)

This issue of privacy tabloid journalism, particularly when pictures are taken of celebrities etc when they are unaware of their photo being taken. Journalists only have the right to publish persoanl photographs if there is consent given and/or the images are in the public interest (not to be confused with 'interest by the public').

In addition to this the act is also concerned with the publication of the details of anyone's family life.

Current Privacy issues in the media

Presently in the media, Google are under fire from British Privacy laws, and is the first company set to be fined under the laws, after it downloaded private passwords and emails. Google said they involuntarily collated payload data from unprotected wireless Internet networks while they sent round cars photographing residential areas for it's Street View Project.

Although Google alerted authorities when they realised what was happening, and insisted that they never intended to use any of the acquired information, the already privacy-intrusive scheme may possibly be fined, and although the fine will make no difference whatsoever to Google's finance, it's reputation will most certainly be dented.

The UK law criteria for breach of privacy are a bit shakey here, as no one has been directly identified through the "inadvertent" data collection, but there a firm grounds for missuse of private information.