War Correspondent Howto

[GGboy]

If you send me a PM, I'd be happy to give names, ranks, & etc. but in general the problems aren't with the professional PAffOs who've gotten very good IMO over the past couple of years. Although there are always exceptions  :
The difficulties seem to be concentrated in the army unfortunately, ranging from senior officers who are positively media allergic to lower level training that is a good 10 years out of date. During a recent 32 Bde BMQ/BOTP course I sat in on, for eg, an instructor was telling the troops that they were under NO CIRCUMSTANCES (the instructor's emphasis, not mine) to talk to reporters. Another lecturer from JAG told these kids that they could not write so much as a letter to the editor without being charged ... it is to weep.
Basically, I think the PAOs should be out there developing relationships with reporters who have an interest in the military and doing what they can to get them to write stories about the army and the good things it's doing. Unfortunately, that's not happening (at least not as far as I can see) and I think that's due in large part to the message from senior leadership, right up to the new CLS and CDS, which is to treat reporters the way they were treated on Roto 1 of Op Athena -- like the proverbial mushrooms.

 

[Cloud Cover]

Torlyn: Freedom of the press is expressly stated in section 2 of the Charter. In any event, this is definitely not a Charter issue.

 

[Cloud Cover]

George Wallace: Quoting someone else is no defence against libel. Unless it's covered under privilege (ie: something said in Parliament, testimony in court or a judicial inquiry, etc.) if I quote you saying something libellous about, oh let's say Scott Taylor   ;D, then he could turn around and sue both you and me. All he has to prove is that it injured his reputation, we would then have to prove either a) that it was true; b) that it was fair comment on the truth; c) that it was covered under privilege (see above); or d) that we had his permission to libel him.

A tidy summary, but in practice it's much more difficult to make a go of it.

 

[GGboy]

A tidy summary, but in practice it's much more difficult to make a go of it.

All too true, but that's mainly because the game's rarely worth the candle. With a handful of notable exceptions, Canadian judges/juries in libel cases have shied away from handing out the multi-gazillion-dollar damages seen in U.S. courts.
At the end of the day, anyone out there considering a libel suit has to factor in that even if they win, their award will barely cover the lawyer's fees, and of course all is subject ot appeals.

 

[George Wallace]

Ah! Does this sound like a lead into the Gomery Inquiry?  ;D

GW

How about those Golf Balls?  ;D

 

[mdh]

During a recent 32 Bde BMQ/BOTP course I sat in on, for eg, an instructor was telling the troops that they were under NO CIRCUMSTANCES (the instructor's emphasis, not mine) to talk to reporters. Another lecturer from JAG told these kids that they could not write so much as a letter to the editor without being charged ... it is to weep.

Interesting - last time I checked DND Public Affairs policy troops were allowed to talk with reporters and some cases actively encouraged to do so.   At our unit we recently gave a lecture on media relations where we specifically covered situations where journalists might be in the field.

We told them that they represented the unit and the uniform and that some decorum was important, ie avoid the swearing, but we also pointed out that their help was critical in making a good impression with the media, and most of all if we didn't tell the army's story in a positive fashion no one was going to do it for us, cheers, mdh

 

[Cloud Cover]

All too true, but that's mainly because the game's rarely worth the candle. With a handful of notable exceptions, Canadian judges/juries in libel cases have shied away from handing out the multi-gazillion-dollar damages seen in U.S. courts.
At the end of the day, anyone out there considering a libel suit has to factor in that even if they win, their award will barely cover the lawyer's fees, and of course all is subject ot appeals.

Until recently, the largest punitive damage award in Canada was a libel and slander case.  It depends on the worth of the reputation of the plaintiff. The reason we don't have large awards is because the concept of treble damages is not recognized in our law [yet]. The best thing to do is haul the Canadian defendant into a US forum and commence proceedings in that jurisdiction- Texas is the preferred favorite. [ ].  Anyway, even in Canada, it is not uncommon for non-punitive damage awards for libel and slander to run as high as 100K for business persons. Incidentally, it is rare to find an insurance policy [and hence an insurer with a duty to defend] which would cover the cost of such an action.

 

[STONEY]

Re: Mr. ST  I do not mean to insult him personnaly nor do i wish to belittle his service, weather 5 or 15 years he walked the walk , which is a lot more than most correspondents ever do. I do not deny his ability to write or turn a phrase unlike myself who can't spell worth a pinch of coon**** .  I have read a lot of his work, as i do any articles & pubs on the military. I like to read all sides of any subject and then form my own opinion. In my humble opinion, he seems fixated on negative opinions of anything military.  I wonder, if even he realizes that he hasn't said anything positive about the military in years. I've had aquaintances after reading one of his articles and knowing nothing of his background say to me " wow this guy really hates the military doesn't he" .  How can he wonder why Public Affairs aren't warm & fuzzy towards him, not that i'm a defender of Public Affairs who's press releases seem geared to public school children. Champion & spokeswman for the rank & file indeed, do you do this by destroying Espirit de Corps.  Amen.

Ready Aye Ready.