Dear friends, Yesterday the UK Justice Secretary laid out his plans for the draft defamation bill in the House of Commons. You can read it here. The Deputy Prime Minister, a strong supporter, also sets out his vision for the bill here. The...
Index on Censorship Freedom of Expression Awards 2011: London, 24 March
Nobody sensible wants to abolish libel law, to allow a free-for-all in which reputations are impugned without a right to redress. It’s about balance and proportion, says
John Kampfner
Contempt of court laws have always been toothless, but the Internet and the smartphone have made it clear they are not fit for purpose, as demonstrated in the current “monstering” of murder suspect Chris Jefferies, says Brian Cathcart
Journalist Shiv Malik was injured by a police baton strike during last week’s student protests. He asks who should be blamed for the violence: protesters, police officers or politicians?
Trainee accountant found guilty of sending “menacing” messages over Twitter, is to attempt to appeal his conviction before the High Court
Facebook, Yahoo!, AOL (UK), Mumsnet and the Internet Service Providers’ Association (ISPA) have written an open letter to the Prime Minister David Cameron calling for urgent reform of our libel laws.
Take that star Howard Donald has seen a super-injunction against an ex-girlfriend lifted. Is this another nail in the coffin for these restrictive measures, asks Mark Lewis
Google and the Information Commissioner’s Office have displayed contempt for privacy — and free speech will suffer as a result, says Alex Deane of Big Brother Watch
Liveblogging and video coverage of Index on Censorship’s debate featuring Julian Assange, David Aaronovitch and Jonathan Dimbleby