Freedom of Information and the Evidentiary Use of Film in Japan: Law and Sociopolitics in an East Asian Democracy

1971 ◽  
Vol 65 (4) ◽  
pp. 1119-1134 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lawrence W. Beer

This study sets forth the post-1945 development and present status of Japanese constitutional and procedural law on court-mass media relations, while analyzing aspects of the interaction between law and sociopolitical thought and behavior. A recent and dramatic illustration of the issues is provided by the Hakata Station Film Case: A Fukuoka court'ssubpoena(August 29, 1969) for newsfilm taken during a student-police encounter occasioned conflict between Japan's mass media and courts; the dispute was resolved by a film seizure (March 4, 1970) three months after the Supreme Court had upheld thesubpoena'sconstitutionality. The media maintain that Article 21 of the Constitution (freedom of expression) gives them the right to determine when their used or unused television film or still photographs may be employed as court evidence, even in the absence of privileged communications. This and other court cases considered, arising from Japan's perennial demonstrations, illustrate a strong tendency toward in-group unanimity, new problems in news and evidence gathering, and the operation of a non-Western legal system influenced by Japanese, European, and American traditions.

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Miral Sabry AlAshry

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate Libyan journalists’ perspectives regarding the media laws Articles 37,132, 38 and 46, which address media freedom in the new Libyan Constitution of 2017. Design/methodology/approach Focus group discussions were done with 35 Libyan journalists, 12 of them from the Constitution Committee, while 23 of them reported the update of the constitution in the Libyan Parliament. Findings The results of the study indicated that there were media laws articles that did not conform to the international laws and United Nations treaties, which the Libyan Parliament committee approved. Another finding from the journalists was the Constitution should provide and guarantee press freedom, while media laws articles approved to put a paragraph about “censorship” in the press and media as a tool to silence government opposition. In addition, journalists indicated future constitution should redraft Article 38 to conform with Article 19 of the “International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,” to support the “principles of freedom of expression and information” without control. Moreover, Article 46 needs to be changed and linked to the “provisions of international law on the right of information access” to improve the access and dissemination of information in the media. Practical implications Redrafting the constitution articles in the future can be summarised as follows: First, the Libyan Constitution should provide and guarantee press freedom without any censorship and include clear articles to protect journalists in conflict zones. Second, Articles 37,132 and 38, about “freedom of information and publication,” need to be redrafted to link with Article 19 of the “International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,” to support the principles of freedom of expression and information, and the use of this right must not be subject to prior control. Third, Article 46 needs to be changed and linked to the provisions of “International law on the Right of Access to Information” to improve access and dissemination of information in the media to protect confidentiality sources. The most important articles should be implemented (freedom of information and personal information act) because after the Arab Spring revolutions, there was a transitional period in societies and a change in the constitutions of Tunisia and Egypt. They developed legal articles about media freedom so that Libya resembles other Arab countries. From that point, the journalists recommended that all information should be protected from government interference to ensure transparency, combat corruption and protect independent journalists. These articles will open the way to add more development articles to media freedom rules in the Journalists’ Syndicate. Fourth, there are also various types of threats encountered by journalists in their work. In pursuit of their right and freedom of expression, they recommended that Libya must establish an independent self-regulatory media that are free from political and economic influence. Fifth, journalists need licenses for them to work through the syndicate. The new syndicate should play an active role to safeguard the rights of journalists, activists and media entities to carry out their work and end the self-censorship. Sixth, the constitution should also add articles to end the impunity and change the articles in the penal code. Overall, the journalists covering the conflict and war are encountering threats, violence and imprisonment. As a result, Libyan journalists must seek new legislation to defend independent journalism and freedom of expression in their deeply divided country. In addition, they need to have a strong central authority to defend journalists and journalism in wartime, where journalists are regularly threatened, abducted and sometimes killed. Also, the Libyan Journalists Syndicate should stress the importance of the media’s self-regulation to guarantee their rights to freedom of expression, grant their readers’ respect and minimise government’s interference. Finally, they need to develop new laws to grant media freedom from regulations and restrictions, as well as defend and promote democracy, the citizens’ right to be informed, as well as their right to discuss and disseminate information. There is also the need to implement articles in the constitution, articles about the protection of political speech, which would be specific enough to differentiate between what is legally permitted and what may be ethically offensive. Originality/value This study will help the new Libyan parliament after the legislative elections on 24 December 2021 to amend the media laws articles in the constitution.


Author(s):  
Mikhail Y. Zelenkov ◽  
Vladimir G. Ponomarev ◽  
Valery V. Gusev ◽  
Anatoly N. Andreev ◽  
Oleg N. Makarov

The authors have set themselves the goal of analyzing the mass media and coverage of terrorist attacks on the Internet, to assess their impact on the growing number of terrorists in the world based on this analysis. The methodological basis of this research is represented by the comprehensive approach, which allowed identifying and corroborating the need to restructure the media and the Internet to combat modern terrorism. The epistemological potential of the statistical and sociological methods used within quantitative and qualitative research makes it possible to properly interpret the results of scientific research devoted to the subject of analysis. The results suggest that current activity by the media and Internet users encourages the growth in the number of terrorist acts in the world and improves the efficiency of recruiting newcomers to terrorist organizations. Furthermore, optimal ways of restructuring social media and expanding the scope of control of the operation of the Internet without violating freedom of expression and the right of citizens to free access to information are discussed.


Author(s):  
Fred H. Cate ◽  
Beth E. Cate

This chapter covers the US Supreme Court’s position on access to private-sector data in the United States. Indeed, the Supreme Court has written a great deal about “privacy” in a wide variety of contexts. These include what constitutes a “reasonable expectation of privacy” under the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution; privacy rights implicit in, and also in tension with, the First Amendment and freedom of expression; privacy rights the Court has found implied in the Constitution that protect the rights of adults to make decisions about activities such as reproduction, contraception, and the education of their children; and the application of the two privacy exemptions to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).


Author(s):  
Jonathan Rose

The Literary Agenda is a series of short polemical monographs about the importance of literature and of reading in the wider world and about the state of literary education inside schools and universities. The category of 'the literary' has always been contentious. What is clear, however, is how increasingly it is dismissed or is unrecognised as a way of thinking or an arena for thought. It is sceptically challenged from within, for example, by the sometimes rival claims of cultural history, contextualized explanation, or media studies. It is shaken from without by even greater pressures: by economic exigency and the severe social attitudes that can follow from it; by technological change that may leave the traditional forms of serious human communication looking merely antiquated. For just these reasons this is the right time for renewal, to start reinvigorated work into the meaning and value of literary reading. For the Internet and digitial generation, the most basic human right is the freedom to read. The Web has indeed brought about a rapid and far-reaching revolution in reading, making a limitless global pool of literature and information available to anyone with a computer. At the same time, however, the threats of censorship, surveillance, and mass manipulation through the media have grown apace. Some of the most important political battles of the twenty-first century have been fought--and will be fought--over the right to read. Will it be adequately protected by constitutional guarantees and freedom of information laws? Or will it be restricted by very wealthy individuals and very powerful institutions? And given increasingly sophisticated methods of publicity and propaganda, how much of what we read can we believe? This book surveys the history of independent sceptical reading, from antiquity to the present. It tells the stories of heroic efforts at self-education by disadvantaged people in all parts of the world. It analyzes successful reading promotion campaigns throughout history (concluding with Oprah Winfrey) and explains why they succeeded. It also explores some disturbing current trends, such as the reported decay of attentive reading, the disappearance of investigative journalism, 'fake news', the growth of censorship, and the pervasive influence of advertisers and publicists on the media--even on scientific publishing. For anyone who uses libraries and Internet to find out what the hell is going on, this book is a guide, an inspiration, and a warning.


Author(s):  
Fitri Meliya Sari

This research was a study conducted on transgender as one of the media spotlight. This study aimed to describe how the media portrays the existence of transgender in Indonesia through media. In this case the researchers looked at the cases of Dena Rachman. Results showed that there was particular justification of media in portraying negatively the behavior of people who become transgender or the like. The portrayal makes people against for the decision and behavior taken by Dena Rachman. Changing the male identity to be a female is very unusual. Especially for those who think that identity is inherent and unchangeable. Yet this identity is socially constructed and liquid. Dena Rachman’a changing reinforces the notion that gender is only two, namely men and women.  Keywords: Transgender, Mass Media, Social Construction.


2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 163-176
Author(s):  
Muhammad Yunus Patawari

Mass media is one of the leading sectors in handling COVID-19. Amidst current health emergency, public trusttowards the information conveyed by the mass media is the key to successful mitigation. Various types of newsregarding massive COVID-19 reports in several media channels have the potential to cause information bias whichends in pros and cons. Insubstantial debates in varied media are counter-productive to the efforts of various partiesin educating the society to avoid misinformation. Based on this, it is important to know the media that are referencesand that gain public trust in seeking information. This study examines the level of public trust in information aboutCOVID-19 in the mass media, both old and new media, using an online questionnaire methodology on May 3, 2020,which was given to 60 respondents. The results show that the respondents’ level of faith in television is higher, but itsconsumption by viewers is much lower than that of online media (news sites and social media). The results showedthat viewers still deemed television a reliable reference for information. From these data it was found out why themedia are rarely used by the people but are able to gain high trust in the eyes of the public. The results of this studyare expected to provide an overview of the attitudes and behavior of the community in understanding COVID-19information so that relevant parties can make appropriate policies in the perspectives of media and communication.


Author(s):  
Tasaddaq Hussain Qureshi ◽  
Prof. Dr. Muhammad Aslam Pervez

This paper focuses on the frames; through which execution of Mumtaz Qadri’s editorialized by the Urdu print media of Pakistan. Eighteen editorials on the selected topic, from March 1, 2016, to April 1, 2016, are selected as a sample from five leading national newspapers viz. Jang, Nawa-e-Waqt, Ausaf, Ummat, and Islam. Freedom of expression and blasphemy depicted through consistency and discord frames is explored with the help of Galtung’s peace and violence journalism indicators. The content analysis approach is applied, with the Framing theory providing theoretical background. It has been found that Media portrayed the issue through discord frame as a dominant frame, which approved the notion of Galtung that media usually portray the conflicts through violence journalism frame. It also approved that the media have not continued framing by a uniform pace. They play an active role in opinion formation of a public. With the passage of time media changed their framing tone from discord to the consistency frames. This proves that media is conscious to enjoy the right of freedom of expression with reference to the blasphemy, in such a volatile situation.


2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 399
Author(s):  
Akmal Adicahya

Access to justice is everyone rights that have to be fulfilled by the government. The regulation number 16 year 2011 of legal aid is an instrument held by the government to guarantee the right. The regulation allowed the participation of non-advocates to provide the legal aid. Through this policy, government emphasizes that:1) Indonesia is a state law which legal aid is an obliged instrument; 2) the prohibition of non-advocate to participate in legal aid is not relevant due to inadequate amount of advocate and citizen seek for justice (justiciabelen), and the advocate is not widely extended throughout Indonesia; 3) Non-Advocates, especially lecturer and law student are widely spread; 4) there are no procedural law which prohibits non-advocate to provide a legal aid. Those conditions are enough argument for government to strengthen the participation of non-advocates in providing legal aid. Especially for The Supreme Court to revise The Book II of Guidance for Implementing Court’s Job and Administration.Keywords: legal aid, non-advocate, justice


2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 193
Author(s):  
Fita Fathurokhmah

This article wants to examine how the media ideology about the concept of radicalism in Islam in the mass media of Republika and Koran Tempo. The Republika newspaper supports and agrees to the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) both with an understanding of the prohibition of homosexuality and the appointment of news of FPI's violence against homosexuals. The Tempo newspaper is more about renewing ideas such as reporting on the views of the Liberal Islam Network (JIL) in respect of homosexuals. Homosexuality is the same sex lover or the choice of sexuality abnormalities is normal as a human being, it does not need to be criticized but must be respected as individual freedom. There is a fundamental ideological difference between Republika and Koran Tempo by renewing the concept of homosexuality with thinking radicalism on the basis of Islamic teachings. The homosexual issue, FPI applies the meaning of Islamic radicalism from the right-wing side which promotes violence as resistance, while JIL applies the meaning of radicalism from the left-wing side which prioritizes the radicalism of thought and law in the Koran.  AbstrakArtikel ini ingin mengkaji bagaimana ideologi media tentang konsep radikalisme dalam Islam di media massa Republika dan Koran Tempo. Surat kabar Republika mendukung dan setuju pada Front Pembela Islam (FPI) baik dengan pemahaman pelarangan homoseksual dan pengangkatan berita tindak kekerasan FPI melawan homoseksual. Koran Tempo lebih pada pembaharuan pemikiran seperti pemberitaan pandangan Jaringan Islam Liberal (JIL) terkait menghormatinya kaum homoseksual. Homoseksual adalah penyuka sesama jenis atau pilihan kelainan seksualitas itu normal sebagai manusia, tidak perlu dicela tapi harus dihargai sebagai kebebasan individu. Terdapat perbedaan ideologi yang mendasar antara Republika dan Koran Tempo dengan melakukan pembaharuan konsep homoseksual dengan radikalisme berpikir dengan pijakan ajaran Islam. Persoalan homoseksual, FPI menerapkan makna radikalisme Islam dari sisi sayap kanan yang mengedepankan kekerasan sebagai perlawanan, sedangkan JIL menerapkan makna radikalisme dari sisi sayap kiri yang mengutamakan keradikalan pemikiran dan hukum dalam al-Quran.


2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (54) ◽  
pp. 499
Author(s):  
Edilton MEIRELES

RESUMONeste trabalho tratamos do direito de manifestação em piquetes e da responsabilidade que possa advir desses atos em face da jurisprudência da Suprema Corte dos Estados Unidos da América. A partir da análise das principais decisões da Suprema Corte se pode concluir que, de modo geral, os participantes do piquete não respondem quando agem de forma não ilegal. Está sedimentado, no entanto, o entendimento de que o organizador do piquete responde pelos atos dos participantes. A pesquisa desenvolvida se justifica enquanto estudo comparativo e diante do pouco debate existente no Brasil a respeito do tema. Na pesquisa foi utilizado o método dedutivo, limitada à ciência dogmática do direito, com estudo de casos apreciados pelo judiciário. PALAVRAS-CHAVES: Responsabilidade; Piquete; Estados Unidos; Suprema Corte; Liberdade De Expressão. ABSTRACTIn this work we deal with the right of demonstration in pickets and the responsibility that may arise from these acts in the face of the jurisprudence of the Supreme Court of the United States of America. From the analysis of the Supreme Court's main decisions it can be concluded that, in general, the picket participants do not respond when they act in a non-illegal way. It is settled, however, the understanding that the picket organizer responds by the acts of the participants. The research developed is justified as a comparative study and in view of the little debate that exists in Brazil regarding the subject. In the research was used the deductive method, limited to the dogmatic science of law, with study of cases appreciated by the judiciary.KEYWORDS: Responsibility; Picket; United States; Supreme Court; Freedom Of Expression.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document