Media Law lecture -- Reporting on Children and Young Persons

Missed questions for this/last week. Did you get them? Post in comments, please!

• Who is a child?

  • 17 and below (in civil court and criminal court)
  • First interaction will be in the youth court.
  • Age 10 is age of mental capacity for committing a crime. Under 10s cannot be convicted of crimes.

• The law: 10/17/18

  • Under 10s cannot be convicted.
  • Will be in youth court under 17.
  • Can be published about over 18.

• Industry regulations:

  • Those at school

    • Those in school have a right to be left alone by the media.

  • Under 16

    • Can’t interview about anything.

  • 16 and 17

    • Hard news — care should be taken, parental permission sought before interview
    • Soft news, celebrity news, etc. — probably less necessary.

Children in the criminal courts

• Prior to proceedings

  • Ofcom and PCC — care has to be taken if identifying child under 18.

• Youth Court

  • §47 Children and Young Persons Act 1933

    • Public barred from proceedings, but journalists not.
    • No identification of any child involved with proceedings. Breeching is a criminal offense.
  • §49

  • When can be lifted

    • To avoid an injustice to the child
    • Child has been given an opportunity to contest the disclosure

Crown Court

• Serious cases will be transferred — i.e., murder

• §39 Children and Young Persons Act 1933 — discretionary order banning publication of name, address, school, etc.

  • Judges will ordinarily apply.
  • Identification doesn’t mean just not naming — also means not giving sufficient detail so that not to identify that person.
• Can be lifted

• Children “concerned in the proceedings”

  • “Salt poisoning” case — child involved in the proceedings but not concerned.
  • Although child might be affected by the fact father/mother/etc. is involved, should not hinder open justice.
  • I.e., party to the proceedings — not merely related.

• Those who turn 18

  • §39 automatically lifted when child turns 18.

• Dead children

  • §39 can’t be applied.

• Young babies

  • Less reason to impose §39 than for someone who can read.

Children as victims of sexual offenses

• Shouldn’t be identified — Sexual Offences Amendment Act 1966
• Jigsaw identification — don’t give sufficient details.
• Never identify it as incest as that inherently points to a family member.

• Adult may be identified so long as relationship between victim and defendant not identified.

  • “a serious sexual offense” used in place of “incest”.

Industry regulations

• Interviewing those under 16 — consent needed
• At school — the right to be left alone

• Children of celebrities

  • Should not be reported unless there’s some justification other than the parent is famous or parent has taken child to, say, a premiere.
  • Murray v Big Pictures

• Children as viewers

  • The watershed
  • Not glamorising drugs, crime