Latest news with #libelcase
Irish Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Irish Times
If Gerry Adams wanted to put manners on the BBC, why not do it in Belfast?
The Gerry Adams libel case against the BBC may end up costing the organisation about two to three years' worth of Gary Lineker's salary and a ton of grief. A High Court judge yesterday directed the BBC to pay €50,000 damages , plus €250,000 legal costs to Adams, pending a possible appeal by the broadcaster. Ironically, the talking points raised by the case may be a fine example of the BBC performing its Reithian duty: to inform, educate and even entertain – as jury and courtroom observers were, by all accounts. Amid High Court hauteur, any faintly witty response can seem Wildean. Talking points might include the notion of 'putting manners' on investigative journalists, as Adams put it, or the question of whether juries – normally beyond criticism – are a help or a hindrance in defamation cases. Or the fascinating matter of forum shopping and specifically why Adams took his case in this jurisdiction. He had every right to do so, of course, as the disputed BBC Northern Ireland Spotlight programme, broadcast in 2016, attracted 15,800 viewers in the Republic. (When former Scottish leader Alex Salmond's chatshow on Russian TV debuted with just 16,000 viewers in the UK in 2017, it was widely mocked for attracting fewer viewers than the wildlife series Ten Deadliest Snakes.) READ MORE Spotlight's 10.45pm slot on a Tuesday night may have been partly to blame for the low viewership in the Republic. Even with the seductive title – A Spy in the IRA – there was clearly minimal interest in the blood vendetta against Denis Donaldson, the former Sinn Féin/IRA member who was eventually outed as an informer for MI5 and the PSNI's special branch. He was found shot dead on April 4th, 2006. Donaldson's daughter, Jane Donaldson , was not permitted to tell the jury that the family never believed the Real IRA's claim that it killed her father. The claim – from a single source, three years after the murder – 'didn't correlate with an awful lot of the sensitive and confidential information we'd gathered from the gardaí', she said. Did it matter to the libel case if Adams was also in the IRA, as he has always denied? Mr Justice Alexander Owens ruled that it was not a question for the jury and refused to allow it to be put directly to Adams. The BBC could only present evidence that Adams had a reputation for being in the IRA, not that he was in the IRA. The mostly young jury – aged between 25 and 35, some hardly born at the time of the Belfast Agreement – were told by the judge that 'a person's reputation can change' and they should 'evaluate' it as of '2016 and now'. We can never have timely insight into how or why they reached their verdict Now that's a talking point of enduring and universal interest. It implies that, with time, even the most savage deeds of historical figures cease to be an integral part of their reputations and inevitably become romanticised as context and nuance fade out. The judge instanced the aftermath of the Irish Civil War (over 100 years ago) as an analogy for how the reputations of participants in historical events change over time. The question is how much time. Thirty, 40, 50 years ago is well within living memory. Young people, quite reasonably, don't wish to dwell on horrific events considered relatively recent by their elders. They may, therefore, assess a reputation by the emotion roused by a song, a chant, a movie-style back story or even by redemptive decisions taken in later life. How that might be interpreted by the bereaved still seeking accountability is what gives it universal interest. For all those reasons, it would have been very civic-minded of Adams if he had chosen his and Denis Donaldson's home patch for his momentous case against the BBC. Taking the case was all about 'putting manners on the British Broadcasting Corporation', he told reporters. 'The British Broadcasting Corporation upholds the ethos of the British state in Ireland and in my view it's out of sync in many, many fronts with the Good Friday Agreement.' Going by those remarks, the obvious place to air his grievances against a British broadcaster would have been in Belfast, which still holds its secrets tight. It would certainly have been speedier, with the potential for a much higher award since the programme undoubtedly had many more viewers in Northern Ireland to infer bad things about the plaintiff's reputation. But at a crudely results-driven level, there was no mystery about it at all, given the Republic's unusually plaintiff-friendly libel laws. The BBC Spotlight reporter, Jennifer O'Leary, distilled the nuance of the problem when she said she had 'nothing to hide, only sources to protect'. When people still live in fear for their lives, how is it possible to square the defence of honest opinion with protecting the identity of sources while making it compelling for a jury? Regardless of the flaws or strengths of a case, while the Republic still has juries in defamation cases, we can never have timely insight into how or why they reached their verdict. In Northern Ireland, such cases are heard before judges who must provide a written judgment or explanation of their decision. Instead, what we're left with is the line about 'putting manners' on a broadcaster that, for over 50 years, has resourced ground-breaking Spotlight investigations carrying multiple levels of risk from paramilitary factions. I'm old enough to remember how both the BBC and ITN - in the teeth of British government lies and cover-ups - doggedly, courageously and expensively investigated the 1988 SAS killing of three members of an active IRA unit in Gibraltar. Against ferocious government pressure and hysterical accusations of bias towards terrorists, both ITN and the unmannerly British Broadcasting Corporation went ahead and aired their damning findings anyway. Their journalism deserves something more than contempt from a man who has been around long enough to know that heroism takes many forms.
BBC News
2 days ago
- General
- BBC News
BBC 'no intention' of blocking output in Ireland, says NI director
BBC Northern Ireland has "no intention" of blocking its news or other output in the Irish Republic, its director Adam Smyth has said in an email sent to has been speculation it was considering the move following Gerry Adams' libel case former Sinn Féin leader sued the BBC in Dublin, as the BBC Northern Ireland Spotlight programme on Denis Donaldson's murder was able to be seen across the accompanying online story, also found to be defamatory, could also be accessed in the jurisdiction. 'Wide of the mark' In an email to staff, BBC NI director Mr Smyth wrote: "We will, of course, be making a considered response to the outcome of the case, including what it means in practical terms."That is what everyone would expect of the BBC."We remain mindful of the legal considerations that apply across the island, but have no intention of limiting our journalism and programmes, or their general availability, as a result of Friday's verdict."He went on: "I stand by everything I said outside Court 24 last Friday."However, the last few days haven't been easy and some of what's been said about the BBC and its integrity has been very wide of the mark."He added the BBC "exists for the whole community".It comes after SDLP MP Colum Eastwood urged Mr Smyth to clarify whether or not the BBC was considering geoblocking its programming in the wake of the libel case. Who was Denis Donaldson? Mr Donaldson was once a key figure in Sinn Féin's rise as a political force in Northern he was found murdered in 2006 after it emerged he had worked for the police and MI5 inside Sinn Féin for 20 2009, the Real IRA said it had murdered on sources, Spotlight claimed the killing was the work of the Provisional Donaldson was interned without trial for periods in the 1970s and, after signing the Good Friday Agreement, Sinn Féin appointed him as its key administrator in the party's Stormont 2005, Mr Donaldson confessed he was a spy for British intelligence for two decades, before disappearing from was found dead in a small, rundown cottage in Glenties, County Donegal. Who is Gerry Adams? Mr Adams was the president of republican party Sinn Féin from 1983 until served as MP in his native Belfast West from 1983 to 1992 and again from 1997 until 2011 before sitting as a TD (Teachta Dála) in the Dáil (Irish parliament) between 2011 and Adams led the Sinn Féin delegation during peace talks that eventually brought an end to the Troubles after the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in was detained in the early 1970s when the government in Northern Ireland introduced internment without trial for those suspected of paramilitary Adams has consistently denied being a member of the IRA.
BBC News
2 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Gerry Adams: BBC to seek more time on whether to appeal libel case
A court in Dublin has been told the BBC intends to apply for orders relating to Gerry Adams' successful libel case against the corporation to be the "stay" is granted, it would allow the BBC time to consider whether it will appeal against the verdict. Mr Adams was awarded €100,000 (£84,000) damages, with the BBC also in line to pay his legal court found the 76-year-old was defamed in a story about the murder of Denis Donaldson. Mr Adams brought the case over an episode of BBC Northern Ireland's "Spotlight" series in 2016, and an accompanying online a court hearing on Tuesday morning, a lawyer for the BBC told a judge that the corporation intended to apply for a "stay". Who was Denis Donaldson? Mr Donaldson was once a key figure in Sinn Féin's rise as a political force in Northern he was found murdered in 2006 after it emerged he had worked for the police and MI5 inside Sinn Féin for 20 2009, the Real IRA said it had murdered on sources, Spotlight claimed the killing was the work of the Provisional Donaldson was interned without trial for periods in the 1970s and, after signing the Good Friday Agreement, Sinn Féin appointed him as its key administrator in the party's Stormont 2005, Mr Donaldson confessed he was a spy for British intelligence for two decades, before disappearing from was found dead in a small, rundown cottage in Glenties, County Donegal. Who is Gerry Adams? Mr Adams was the president of republican party Sinn Féin from 1983 until served as MP in his native Belfast West from 1983 to 1992 and again from 1997 until 2011 before sitting as a TD (Teachta Dála) in the Dáil (Irish parliament) between 2011 and Adams led the Sinn Féin delegation during peace talks that eventually brought an end to the Troubles after the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in was detained in the early 1970s when the government in Northern Ireland introduced internment without trial for those suspected of paramilitary Adams has consistently denied being a member of the IRA.
The Independent
3 days ago
- General
- The Independent
Sinn Fein minister urges BBC to ‘learn lessons' from Gerry Adams libel case
BBC management must reflect on the outcome of the Gerry Adams libel case and avoid knee-jerk reactions to the verdict, a Sinn Fein minister has said. Stormont's Finance Minister John O'Dowd said he welcomed the outcome of the high-profile case. Former Sinn Fein leader Mr Adams took the BBC to court over a 2016 episode of its Spotlight programme, and an accompanying online story, which he said defamed him by alleging he sanctioned the killing of former Sinn Fein official Denis Donaldson, for which he denies any involvement. A jury at the High Court in Dublin awarded Mr Adams 100,000 euro (£84,000) when it found in his favour on Friday after determining that was the meaning of words included in the programme and article. It also found the BBC's actions were not in good faith and the corporation had not acted in a fair and reasonable way. Mr Donaldson was shot dead in Co Donegal in 2006, months after admitting his role as a police and MI5 agent over 20 years. Mr Adams' legal team said the verdict of the jury was a 'full vindication' for their client while the BBC said it was 'disappointed' with the outcome, warning it could have 'profound implications and potentially 'hinder freedom of expression'. Following the jury's decision, Mr Adams said his case had been about 'putting manners' on the BBC. The veteran republican claimed the corporation upheld the ethos of the British state in Ireland and was 'out of sync' on many fronts in relation to the Good Friday peace agreement. The National Union of Journalists has described those remarks as 'chilling'. Seamus Dooley, Irish secretary of the NUJ, also said the case showed the need for reform of Ireland's defamation laws. However, Mr O'Dowd said the BBC reaction to the case indicated it was 'unwilling to learn lessons'. 'I welcome the judgment,' he told BBC Radio Ulster. 'I think it's a timely reminder that everyone has the right to defend their name in court. Gerry has been successful in his case and I think the BBC have lessons to learn, and they should instead of the knee-jerk reaction that we've heard thus far from them, I think they should take a time of reflection and reflect on that court judgment.' The minister was asked if Mr Adams' claims about the BBC upholding the ethos of the British state and being out of sync with the Good Friday Agreement reflected Sinn Fein's position on the broadcaster. 'I think it's a position that many in society hold,' he replied. 'There are many, many fine journalists from the BBC – there's no question about that. But I think the upper echelons of the BBC in the north and the reaction to the court judgment shows that they're unwilling to learn lessons. 'They're unwilling to reflect on their own role and responsibility. So, I think … this is a time for the BBC to reflect, and the upper echelons of the BBC to reflect, rather than some of the knee-jerk reactions we've seen from them thus far.'
The Independent
3 days ago
- General
- The Independent
BBC told to ‘learn lessons' from Gerry Adams libel loss
Gerry Adams won a libel case against the BBC over a 2016 Spotlight programme that alleged he sanctioned the killing of Denis Donaldson. A jury in Dublin awarded Adams 100,000 euro (£84,000), finding the BBC 's actions were not in good faith and were unfair. Adams stated the case was about "putting manners" on the BBC, claiming the corporation upheld the ethos of the British state in Ireland. The BBC expressed disappointment with the outcome, warning it could hinder freedom of expression. Sinn Fein minister John O'Dowd welcomed the judgment and urged BBC management to reflect on the outcome and avoid knee-jerk reactions.
