This is the seventeenth instalment in a regular series from Inforrm highlighting press and case reports of new media and information cases from around the world.  It is intended to complement our United States: Monthly Round Up posts.  Please let us know if there are other cases and jurisdictions which we should be covering.

In the media

Australia

The Australian High Court has found that The Sydney Morning Herald and The Australian were liable as publishers of readers’ Facebook comments about former Northern Territory youth detainee Dylan Voller because they facilitated the comments by setting up and posting on public Facebook pages.

There was an Inforrm post about the decision as well as numerous media reports including the Guardian and the National Law Review.

The Australian Senate Environment and Communications References Committee on 6 September 2021 conducted another hearing as part of its enquiry into media diversity. The Canberra report can be found here. Sky News reports on the hearing.

A government bill has been introduced that creates three new types of warrants empowering the Australian police to spy on suspects of cybercrime, the Guardian reports.

Sky News Australia has denied broadcasting Covid misinformation following its suspension from YouTube. Lachlan Murdoch has been asked to appear at a parliamentary inquiry into YouTube’s suspension of Sky News Australia.

iNews reports on “Rupert Murdoch’s Australian media empire begins to ease decades-long climate change scepticism.” The New York Times also reports on the topic.

Canada

The Federal election in Canada has been held with the results not yet being announced, CBC reports. CTV News reports that the election ballots could take up to five days to count.

Canadaland reports on what media outlets benefitted from the Trudeau government’s covid-19 funds.

Global News has a piece on the pandemic election and the role of social media strategies amid covid-19.

The Conversation has an interesting article entitled: Facebook vs Australia – Canadian media could be the next target.

Hong Kong

Jimmy Lai’s Hong Kong media group Next Digital has filed for liquidation the Guardian reports. Authorities warned that allowing Jimmy Lai’s to vote in the liquidation could pose a national security risk and Hong Kong’s High Court has ruled that the governments restriction of his right to vote complies with national security laws, a move reported by the South China Morning Post.

International companies are being forced to reconsider their future in Hong Kong following the passage of a national security law, the Guardian reports.

Sing Tao, the oldest Chinese language newspaper in Hong Kong, has been forced to register its US arm as a foreign agent following filings with the Department of Justice.

New Zealand

The Guardian has a piece entitled how Māori women have reshaped New Zealand’s media through their native language.

Pakistan

The Pakistan media regulation bill is going before Parliament prompting protests from thousands of journalists. “The proposed law is draconian in scope and devastating in its impact on the constitutional principles,” Shahzada Zulfiqar, the president of the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), told DW. The Daily Pakistan has a piece exploring why the Pakistan Media Development Authority, the entity which is being established by the bill, is so controversial. A committee has been formed by the Pakistan Government to review the bill.

Russia

Voting the Russian election has begun with Apple and Google removing an opposition app from stores.

Russian Media Outlets and NGO’s have launched a petition demanding cancellation of the laws which label them as foreign agents.

In the Courts

Australia

Fairfax Media Publications Pty Ltd v Voller; Nationwide News Pty Limited v Voller; Australian News Channel Pty Ltd v Voller [2021] HCA 27 – as already mentioned, a case in which the majority of the High Court held that newspapers were liable for comments posted on their Facebook pages.

Kuksal v Nine Network [2021] VSCA 248– a case concerning an appeal from a finding that there was no arguable case for breach of confidence.

Gough v Squillacioti [2021] NSWDC 411– a defamation case where the plaintiff was successful and awarded $25,000 damages and aggravated damages of $5,000.

Egan v Santamaria [2021] NSWDC 418– a successful defamation case where the defendant failed to file a defence. Judgement entered for the plaintiff in the sum of $268,506.85.#

This Round up was complied by Suneet Sharma a junior legal professional with a particular interest and experience in media, information and privacy law.