One of the more well known cases involving reporter's privilege occurred several years ago when former New York Times reporter Judith Miller spent three months in jail. It's a rather complicated case, but this is a brief synopsis of it.
Finally, it seems like technology often leads to less privacy. With the popularity of cell phones and social media sites like Facebook and Twitter, do you think people are unconcerned with privacy? The Supreme Court is currently considering a case where technology and privacy are diametrically opposed.
You can share your thoughts on any or all of these issues.
Flickr Creative Commons photo by Sean MacEntee
I think what Judith Miller did, spending 3 months in jail, proves she is a very trustworthy and loyal journalist and hopefully that reinforces other journalists' relationship with their sources.
ReplyDeleteAs for defamation through social media, I think that is something we do need to worry about, especially my generation. Teens today spend hours on facebook and twitter, and having thousands of facebook friends makes spreading a false rumor one status away. From that, people can comment with their two cents' worth and even post a status stemming from the primary status, causing a whirlwind of rumors and potential harm for the person being ostracized.
As for technology leading to less privacy, I think that is definitely something we need to worry about. However, it can be a good thing (in some cases). I remember reading about a man who was a suspect a bank brake-in. In court he proved he was innocent from a status he posted on facebook at the same time of the break in, indirectly saying how he was at his 'gammy's house.' In a case like that, technology can be used to prove innocence.
I feel Judith Miller is a very dedicated reporter, considering that she made a promise to her source that she wouldn't say who they were and she was willing to got to jail for them. I think it makes a lot of people feel safer giving information to reporters because they believe that the reporter will keep their word like Judith did. But, the main thing Judith Miller did that was illegal, besides not telling the government her source, was she named a CIA operative. This is illegal to do because it can put that person's life at risk. I think she just shouldn't have wrote about that in the first place.
ReplyDeleteOn social media I believe that people know there are false statements because anyone can post anything. I feel the reason there hasn't been many libel cases on social media sites is because people can't really trust what other people post. People read the news to get the real information, not just some random person's opinion.
It is very scary to think that the government can track you on your phone and frankly, I find it annoying that some people post where they are every minute in the day. We don't need to know that! I feel in certain cases, like when tracking a criminal it would be okay to track someone but the government should have a very important reason why.
I believe what Judith Miller was an honorable thing to do as a journalist. Keeping a source anonymous even when faced with such pressure is the right, but hard, thing to do.
ReplyDeleteAs for defamation via social media, I believe it is becoming a huge problem. Much of society, especially teenagers, find it acceptable to openly express their opinions on controversial matters. I know for a fact that many kids find it appropriate to say bad things about their schools, teachers, and even worse, classmates. Social media enables many irresponsible people to broadcast hateful and incorrect opinions that WOULD NOT be allowed to print in almost all newspapers. I think it is a very hard problem to tackle because as wrong as people may be, it is nearly impossible to keep them from speaking their mind.
Lastly, I agree with Eileen in that it is a very scary thought that someone is able to "break in" to your phone. I carry my phone with me almost everywhere! If someone is able to listen to me through my phone, they would be able to hear EVERYTHING I said. I even use my phone as an alarm to wake me up in the morning! They could hear me while I slept! This privacy breach reminds me of the original concern I had when first purchasing a webcam enabled computer. I was worried that someone may be able to use my camera to see what I was doing. Although this may still be a reasonable fear, I should now focus on protecting my phone!
Judith Miller did something brave and honorable and I feel that she should be recognized as a small hero in the world of journalism. Acts like that help the image of journalists stay favorable in the eyes of the readers. What she did and others like her I feel help repair the damages that happen when some journalists make an honest mistake or when they invade a person's privacy just for some information that may or may not make for a good story.
ReplyDeleteI think that Judith Miller was right to do what she did. She was showing her admirable qualities such as her trustworthiness and determination. These qualities go hand in hand with good journalism. I think by making a stand and keeping her source a secret until the source told her she was able to do otherwise was a brave and just decision. She is truly a shinning image of what journalists should strive to be.
ReplyDeleteI believe that adults who post cruel, reputation damaging or untrue statements about other people should be punished more frequently. After all after posting something on the internet it never gets taken down. Therefore when you post something you are "publishing" it to the internet forever. Publishing something vicious or untrue about someone on your blog or social networking site, like Facebook or Twitter, falls under the category of libel. And people who do libelous things, by law, need to be punished.
To me. I do believe that with todays technology more and more people are giving away their privacy. I also think that many of them are unaware of what they are doing. Whether it be giving their location on facebook, unlocking their twitter accounts, or making their facebook profiles easier accessible, many people dont know the consequences. If I knew that anybody on facebook could see my location I would be uneasy. Its not safe to let out every single detail of my life to the public. I agree with the idea that americans are giving away their privacy for technology. Soon this could become a serious problem. I think that government officials should work towards educating toadys people on the risks they are taking when they begin to give personal information online.
ReplyDeleteJudith Miller did a very noble thing, being so willing to go to jail to protect her source's identity. You can see from this story why it's so important to make promises of confidentiality very rarely.
ReplyDeleteIt never occurred to me how common libel can be online. People seem to think that when they get behind a computer screen they don't have to be themselves anymore; they can do or say anything and they won't get caught. But some things that are said on sites like Facebook and Twitter are definitely libel. The person who said it probably was just mad and didn't realize that they could be sued for this, but that doesn't mean it can't happen.
I have always, at my parents' insistence, been very careful about what I put online about myself. Letting other people track your daily movements is, in my opinion, kind of a stupid thing to do. And law enforcement should need a warrant to use GPS tracking; if not, it's a huge case of invasion of privacy.
I think the internet is completely unique in the sense that anyone can say anything they want with little to no censorship. In a way, this is both a blessing and a curse because it provides a open platform for discussions of all types, but it also gives people a false feeling on anonymity.
ReplyDeleteI also think that it is not simply that Americans care less about privacy now. There is an feeling among people who use public online sites that things that are posted are actually private. Many people fail to realize that what they put up on facebook or twitter can go far beyond the friends that were intended to see it. People often forget that something 'deleted'is necessarily gone.
I think as the internet becomes a larger and larger part of our culture, cases like Judith Miller's will become much more common. At the same time, however, I think a lot of people do not take many of the comments made online very seriously, so libel lawsuits may not increase in number.
Like everyone has already stated, I think that what Judith Miller did was a great thing. I like, and fully agree with, what Miller said in the interview. She said she is hopeful that her stay in jail will "strengthen the bond between reporters and their sources." I think that her loyalty to her source may help other sources (for future stories) to realize that most reporters mean what they say when they make a promise to stay confidential. Hopefully, Miller's case has helped the public to be more trusting of good reporters.
ReplyDeleteThe whole issue about the privacy of phones really scares me. I think the government should do something (although easier said than done, of course) about this. The virus/program that is planted into the phones should not be available to the public...it should just be able to be used for the CIA and other groups who have a good reason to need to listen in on people's conversations. I am glad there are articles out about this topic, because people need to know that they cannot assume everything they do on their phones is private.
I do agree with the social media article that people are commonly committing libel on sites such as Facebook, Twitter, etc. When this happens on a public forum such as this, it is not only libel, but it is basically cyber-bullying. People who are not in a position to take a stand on affairs of people are able to freely talk about them, and give their friends or followers ideas (true or incorrect) about certain people. The article states that although there is much libel constantly circulating on these social websites, lawsuits are not happening very often. Though this is sad that people are able to get away with talking badly about their peers, elders, etc., I feel that it would be nearly impossible to have real cases against many of the people who post. First of all, there would be so many cases. Secondly, there would be so many ways for the "accused" to get around what they are being accused of. I believe there would be so many excuses they could make up to get out of the lawsuit. My point is, even though people who say these bad things about people on sites should get punished for libel, it would be very hard to condemn.
I think Judith Miller should set an example for journalists everywhere. Journalism would not be the same if it weren't for the trustworthiness of the reporters. If people were under the impression that journalists could not be trusted with their information, it makes them much less likely to reveal their information.
ReplyDeleteIt doesn't surprise me that there aren't many libel cases through social media. Our generation basically has it pounded into our heads that we can't believe everything we see on the internet. It is very easy to find false information on the internet, which makes it hard to discern between what is true and false.
I strongly believe law enforcement should have a warrant to track people, it is an invasion of privacy! Everyone should have a right to privacy, it is very frightening knowing that you could be being tracked and have no knowledge of it.
It's a bit shocking to realize that those kinds of things that people say on a social media site or through a text would be considered libel. If you think about it, almost every teenager would probably have one instance where they could be sued. It's enough to make someone rethink what they are about to say.
ReplyDeleteI think that Miller did a very honorable thing by having the courage to remain true to her sources. What she did shows values that every journalist should have.
ReplyDeleteI don't think it's surprising that people aren't concerned about libel through social media. To most people it's just a common thing that doesn't merit much attention. People's standards for privacy are certainly slipping, and the third article proved that. I think it's a little scary, especially because of some of the examples of how far things could go at the end of the article. It's a slippery slope and privacy is an issue everyone should be concerned about.
Taking the hard way out of a situation to protect someone else is a true sign of courage. Judith Miller could have never even seen the inside of a jail if she had betrayed her source. However, she did the courageous thing and didn't reveal her source until she received his spoken and written word.
ReplyDeleteSo much of our society today is being controlled by social media. Websites such as Facebook and Twitter have made spreading gossip so easy. Some people go through unnecessary measures to ruin the reputation of others on websites such as these. Many accusations made by people on this type of forum are libelous. When people are making public online statements that can be read by anyone, they need to remember that everyone is innocent until proven guilty.
I think that Judith Miller's decision to keep her source anonymous was extremely respectable. She set a good example for Journalists everywhere, and definitely did the right thing despite all of the pressure she was clearly under.
ReplyDeleteSocial media has its benefits, but at the same time causes many problems. Essentially, anyone can post anything, at any time. It is unfortunate that because of this, many false and demeaning statements about others can circulate through the web. I don't think there is much that can be done about this though, as it is a huge issue to tackle. For now, people are going to have to realize that not everything they read is going to be true.
As for privacy issues associated with technology, I do think that people are lowering their standards in regards to what they are sharing with the public. It is common knowledge that if you are making the decision to use Foursquare to share your exact location at any given time, you will be putting your privacy at risk. Yet people knowingly do this without hesitation.
On the contrary, there are many situations in which people have no idea that they are being watched. There are many tracker-viruses that circulate the internet, and, as we discussed last week, phones can easily be hacked into these days. Unfortunately, I believe that this is the scary reality of our day and age.
It is crucial that people become educated on the fact that privacy is hard to come by if you are going to be using technology these days.