18 Aug 11 | Index Index, minipost
Ecuadorian journalist Peter Tavra Franco, who was sentenced to six months in prison for libel on 19 July, now faces a 10 million USD fine. The charges were presented by siblings Milton and Mónica Carrera, after Tavra published a story in the newspaper El Universo in February 2009 in which he narrates the plaintiff’s escape after being arrested for human trafficking from Ecuador into the United States. The Carreras claimed that the story’s publication caused “great damage to their honour, public image and prestige”, while Tavra asserted he had “used police documents” that established cause for the arrest. In a separate case in the country, radio journalist Freddy Aponte is facing a third conviction in a lawsuit for slander filed by the former mayor of Loja, José Bolívar Castillon.
29 Jul 11 | Uncategorized
What happened to former schoolteacher Chris Jefferies (landlord to murder victim Joanna Yates) is a clear-cut example of the British media trashing someone’s reputation. Amongst a series of entirely false allegations, some newspapers also sank to photoshopping Jefferies’ hair to make him look sinister. There was no public interest in the nasty speculation about Jefferies, nor can any of it be justified as “fair comment” (the two defences the Libel Reform Campaign want strengthened). (more…)
30 Jun 11 | Index Index, minipost
Ronald Papandrea, a former assistant attorney of Warren, Michigan has dropped a libel case against an anonymous blogger known as ‘Robert’ after the local judge turned down his request to obtain the blogger’s name. Papandrea claimed the blogger had made defamatory comments about him on the Warren Forum website.
14 Jun 11 | Index Index, Middle East and North Africa, minipost, News and features
Bahrain’s Information Affairs Authority today announced it has commissioned a UK-based legal firm to file a defamation case against the Independent newspaper. Nawaf Mohammed Al-Maawda, publications director-general said: “The Independent has deliberately published a series of unrealistic and provocative articles targeting Bahrain and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.” He claimed the newspaper, and in particular its Middle-East correspondent Robert Fisk had set out to tarnish Bahrain’s image.
