GOSSIP ought not to be the foundation upon which news is premised, a High Court judge has admonished as he ordered a media house and its journalist to compensate MP Adrian Leonce for a 2018 article which unjustifiably insinuated he was a wife-beater.
“Sadly and notwithstanding the billions spent on education, this society’s appetite for salacious stories is significant and it is fuelled, unabated, by the media.
“In an era where occurrences and developments reach a wide audience almost instantly via social media platforms, traditional media houses should understand that their continued relevance will depend on their ability to publish verified, reliable and accurate information,” Justice Frank Seepersad said in his ruling on Friday.
Leonce, MP for Laventille East/Morvant and Minister in the Ministry of Housing, and his wife Karen-Lee Bethelmy-Leonce, a teacher, in their defamation claim against Guardian Media Ltd (GML) and its reporter Renuka Singh, complained of the contents of an article published on October 8, 2018, in the Trinidad Guardian newspaper.
The article related to injuries Bethelmy-Leonce, a secondary school teacher, suffered on August 30, 2018, in an accident at her home when she slipped and fell.
Seepersad said while the court “shall with unwavering resolve, uphold and protect press freedom,” it will not sanction irresponsible journalism or outrageous press conduct.
He ordered Singh and GML to pay Leonce $325,000 in damages for the defamatory article, but dismissed Bethelmy-Leone’s claim for breach of confidence and misuse of private medical information.
In his ruling, Seepersad said regrettably, TT’s society was divisive and the “ill-advised, unjustified and reckless inclusion” of statements by Leonce about rumours of domestic violence “played into a narrative of ‘another dysfunctional black family’.
“This portrayal was irresponsible and the court feels compelled to register its dismay and disapproval that such an exemplary family was brought into ridicule.”
He said it was accepted that in a modern democracy, journalists were entrusted with the professional obligation to impart information on matters of public interest as they can unearth and publicise information which can lead public officials to be held to account for their actions and decisions.
[caption id="attachment_918839" align="alignnone" width="765"] Minister in the Ministry of Housing Adrian Leonce. - Photo by Jeff K. Mayers[/caption]
However, he said, not everything in which the public may have an interest can satisfy the “public-interest” aspect of the defence available to the media.
“The public may be interested in issues, situations or occurrences which may be entertaining or salacious but which are devoid of any element of national significance. In this regard, the media have for too long genuflected to the generation of finances by publishing articles that contain puerile, sensational, sensual or personal information which has no real public interest aspect or element.
“It is the duty of media practitione
