Spurt in net-related libel cases in the UK

27 Aug 2011

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Internet-related libel cases have more than doubled in England and Wales in the last one year, even as social media continues to expand aggressively globally.
 
A report by legal information firm Sweet and Maxwell reveals that the number of libel claimants – those claiming they have been slandered online – increased from seven to 16 in the year ending May 31.

The total number of defamation cases brought to court has increased from 83 to 86.
 
''People who find themselves damaged on social media sites can often find it time-consuming and difficult to have the offending material removed, because many platform providers do not accept responsibility for their users' content,'' remarks Korieh Duodu, a media specialist with Addleshaw Goddard, a law firm.

Duodu said, ''Such is the speed at which information travels through social networks that one unchecked comment can spread into the mainstream media within minutes, which can cause irreparable damage to the subject who has been wronged.''
 
Duodu notes that the rapid expansion of social media – including sites such as Facebook and Twitter – presents a huge problem for individuals and corporates trying to protect reputations from harmful user-generated content.
 
He points out that much of the material appearing on social media and the wider internet is written by non-professionals who do not check facts as journalists in traditional media organisations do. ''There is certainly a need for greater accountability of the providers of user-generated content,'' he adds.
 
In India, often one finds unsubstantiated allegations, especially relating to alleged Wikileaks' lists of people with black money stashed abroad, in mails sent to thousands of users.

The names of virtually all the top political and business leaders are mentioned in the 'reports' that are forwarded by gullible net users to their friends and relatives.
 
And as Joseph Goebbels, the Nazi minister of propaganda, had said: ''If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it.''
 
But the flip side, as the UK's Libel Reform Campaign group points out, is that 'corporate bullies' are increasingly initiating action against smaller website operators. The group has sought more legal backing to such operators to protect them from actions from corporates.
 
A spokesman for the group said the draft Defamation bill, currently being considered by the British Parliament, should make it easier and less costly for website operators to initiate public interest defence if they are dragged to court. ''We need the select committee looking at the draft Defamation Bill to make concrete proposals to stop legal threats against internet hosts bringing down entire websites,'' added the spokesman.

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