Take 10 #14

Welcome to RPC's media and communications law update. This issue reports on key media developments and the latest cases.

News items

Online Safety Bill

As outlined in the Queen's Speech, the Government has published the Draft Online Safety Bill. Read more 

Gale v Scannella

Following an unqualified Offer of Amends, the court assessed damages for a Twitter libel in the sum of £8,000 (which had applied a discount of a third as a result of the Offer of Amends). Read more 

Duchess of Sussex v ANL

In a further judgment by Lord Justice Warby, the Duchess of Sussex was successful in her application for summary judgment in respect of her copyright claim against Associated Newspapers Limited. Read more 

Blogger jailed for contempt of court

As has been widely reported, Craig Murray, blogger and former diplomat, has been sentenced to eight months in prison for 'abhorrent' contempt of court over his coverage of the Alex Salmond criminal trial. Read more 

Rachel Riley loses latest round of libel battle

Rachel Riley has lost the latest round of a libel battle with political blogger Mike Sivier. Ms Riley had succeeded in striking out Ms Sivier's defences of truth, honest opinion and publication on a matter of publication interest at first instance. Read more

Rachel Riley loses latest round of libel battle

Rachel Riley has lost the latest round of a libel battle with political blogger Mike Sivier. Ms Riley had succeeded in striking out Ms Sivier's defences of truth, honest opinion and publication on a matter of publication interest at first instance. Read more 

Anna Turley to get back £1.3m in legal costs after winning libel battle

Following her successful libel trial in 2019, Senior Costs Judge Gordon-Saker ruled that former MP Anna Turley was entitled to have her £1.3m legal bill paid by the defendants to the action, Unite the Union and Stephen Walker. Read more 

'Traveller injunctions'

In a recent judgment, Mr Justice Nicklin assessed injunctions granted in 38 different sets of proceedings to local authorities, which prohibit the unauthorised occupation of land. Read more 

Spicer v Met Police

Mr Justice Knowles has dismissed William Spicer's libel claim against the Met Police Commissioner which concerned the publication of a press release relating to the outcome of Mr Spicer's criminal trial. Read more 

Norwegian DPA fine of Disqus Inc 

The Norwegian Data Protection Authority has notified Disqus that they intend to issue an administrative fine for non-compliance with the GDPR rules on accountability, lawfulness and transparency. Read more

Chatter

Google analytics to work without cookies

As reported by Data Protection News, Google has recently announced privacy features that allow marketers to gain insights in Google Analytics and other measurement products without the use of third-party cookies and identifiers. Read more 

Facebook loses bid to block ruling on EU-US Data sharing decision

Facebook Inc. lost a bid to block a European Union privacy decision that could suspend its ability to send information belonging to European users to U.S computer servers. Read more 

Policy changes for Twitter 

On a similar subject, Twitter's head of UK public policy, Katy Minshall, told the Lords Communication and Digital Committee looking into freedom of speech online that "now is the time to really look at what is the best approach to how we moderate world leaders". Read more

IPSO guidance on misleading headlines

IPSO has reiterated that news reports should not be used to justify misleading headlines, having upheld a complaint about the accuracy of two stories published last year. Read more 

Litigant banned from brining court cases for two years

Mr Justice Pepperall has granted a two-year civil restraint order against Andrew Wardle who has made increasingly 'bizarre' allegations about senior judges, police officers and even two former prime ministers. Read more 

German watchdog bans Facebook from processing Whatsapp data

As reported by The Economic Times, German's lead data protection regulator has banned Facebook from gathering data on WhatsApp users, citing an update to its privacy policy that breaches stringent European data protection rules by allowing access to a lot more information on the chat app's users. Read more 

Quote of the fortnight:

“A vibrant and free media is essential to our democracy and our Bill will make sure vital public interest journalism can reach its audience without interference, with Ofcom keeping a watchful eye on big tech firms to ensure their platforms remain open and impartial theatres of debate.” – Minister of State for Media and Data, John Whittingdale, speaking about the new draft Online Safety Bill.