CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Viewed from legal prism and pinnacle, libel in general represents
written and recorded firm in a firm or less permanent nature like photography,
cartoon, statue, picture, caricature, moving cinematography, television,
pictures or images, documentary, etc designed to expose an individual to
hatred, ridicule or contempt, cause him to be shunned or avoided, disparage him
in his office, profession or trade and again, lower him in the estimation of
right thinking members of the society generally.
One despicable issue that has over the years taken the industrial time
of both medieval and contemporary media practitioners revolve on how possible
to avert the mention of libel in their ceaseless and priceless publications.
This intractable issue, no doubt, has driven the print media to guard
their information intended publications like the only egg of the fowl while
exercising its constitutional functions of education, entertainment,
information and cultural correlation of the parts of the society. These
essential and cardinal functions have further been evaluated by the engagement
of well tested and proven scholars exhumed from different academic strata to
man and decisively checkmate unintended libelous words and statements that may
find the way into print media page. This, to an extent, unveils the
unwillingness of the print media to romance the tides of libel action. Again,
the writ of corrigendum and apology further indexes the print media preparedness
to create the enabling environment to work and protect the
integrity and privacy of the government and every right-thinking member of the
society generally.
However, the constitutional rights of the mass media
especially the print keeps aglow for it to keep its heterogeneous audience on
the quinine on the goodies and dangers of the environment. This is why the gate
keeping exercise “has remained a barometer to access editors and their
cohorts.”Sequel to this, one is made to observe that the constitutional rights
of the media to inform, educate and entertain members of the society do not
approve the application of malice, hatred and unjust attack in the art of news
reporting and publications.
Legally, the law of defamation exists to guide the media and protect
the reputation of the individual in both his moral and professional reputation
from unjustified attack.
The law, as it is, refers to a set of rules by which
citizens of a state regulate their conduct in relation to their fellow citizens
and to the state. It is wide, severe and punitive. This is why it has become
imperative for the journalist, the publisher and distributor of newspapers -
indeed for everyone that earns his living with words to be conscious of the
perils associated with the law of defamation. In view of
this, the law recognizes in every man a right to have estimation in which he
stands in the opinion of others unaffected by false and defamatory statements
and imputations.
However, the emergence of libelous remarks in any given publication
reveals an index of malice contrary to the harmony talked about by the law as
the seeming rapport between the government, media and the general public. Media
vigilance arising from constant gate keeping has for some time now remained
futile in what media kith and kin in the learned world described as innocuous
statement. A legal school of thought sees innocuous statement as one embracing
more than one meaning; a statement that is innocently tailored but capable of
defamatory meaning by virtue of the surrounding circumstances. Again,
ecclesiastics school of thought differ from the legal school of thought in that
it consider as distinguishing defamation from injurious falsehood, innuendo,
abuse or vulgar words that may be defamatory in nature.
Despite this glaring differences, the fear of uncertainty
encapsulating libel actions like cost of damages, the circumstantial nature of
innuendo and lack of standard measurement to establish the worth of a man’s
good reputation or at least, the extent to which it was in danger of being
libeled by a false statement of unfair criticism) ushers danger to careless and
provocative publications. Libel, although not much more permanent in character,
bites more in harming the reputation of the affected plaintiff.
Libel, of course,
manifests in the form of criminal, blasphemous, seditious and obscenity. These
branches of libel constitute a rock of headache to any media outfit that
hobnobs with reports devoid of fairness and justification and objectivity.
Believing the fact, in every wrong there is a corresponding remedy basically to
avert injuria sine damno a media outfit so caught in the web of libelous act
can seek redress by applying the principle of fair comment, justification,
rolled-up-plea, absolute privilege, consent or volenti non fit injuria etc.
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE
PROBLEM
The problem
that led to the study of Libel and News Media are numerous. The basic problem
of the media arises from not having access to some information protected by the
government. Media practitioners do not have access to some information and
thereby give false report of such information in some cases to the general
public. This study will identify the problems and suggest some solutions to it.
1.3 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
1. To examine the procedures used to minimize libel
risks in the media.
2. To determine libel charges on the media.
3. To analyze ways of cubing libel risk on the
media.
4. To determine the level of libel on the media in
Nigeria.
1.4 RESEARCH
QUESTION
1. Are there procedures used to minimize libel risks in the
media.
2. What are the libel charges on media?
3. How can libel risks be cubed?
4. What is the level of libel on the media in
Nigeria?
1.5 RESEARCH
HYPOTHESIS
H0: The level of libel on
the media is low in Nigeria.
H1: The level of libel on
the media is high in Nigeria.
1.6 SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The scope
of this research work is limited to the Nigerian News Media covering both print
and electronic media in the industry. However the principles defined in this
study may be well applicable in some other cases than the set target.
1.7 LIMITATION OF THE STUDY
The following are the limitation that hinders the
study of this research work;
1. Financial
Constraint: There is
not enough funds to fuel the study of this research work. The researcher has
access to a very little source of fund.
2. Time Constraints: Due to the limited time available to carry out
this research work, it is not possible to carry out the research extensively as
anticipated by the researcher.
1.8 DEFINITION OF TERMS
1. JOURNALIST: A journalist collects and disseminates
information about current events, people, trends, and issues. His or her work
is acknowledged as journalism.
2. REPORTERS: Reporters are one type of journalist; they
create reports as a profession for broadcast or publication in mass media such
as newspapers, television, radio, magazines, documentary film, and the
Internet. Reporters find sources for their work, their reports can be either
spoken or written, and they are often expected to report in the most objective
and unbiased way to serve the public good. A columnist is a journalist who
writes pieces that appear regularly in newspapers or magazines.
3. MASS
MEDIA: Mass media refers
collectively to all media technologies, including the Internet, television, newspapers,
and radio, which are used for mass communications, and to the organizations
which control these technologies.
4. PRINTING PRESS: Printing press is a
device for applying pressure to an inked surface resting upon a print medium (such as paper or cloth), thereby transferring
the ink. Typically used for texts, the invention and spread of
the printing press are widely regarded
as the most influential events in the second millennium AD, revolutionizing the
way people conceive and describe the world they live in, and ushering in the period of modernity.
