Couldn’t Tell You Even If I Wanted To? Anonymity of Journalists’ Sources, Voluntary Disclosure and Abuse of Process
| Published date | 01 June 2017 |
| Author | Elaine Freer |
| Date | 01 June 2017 |
| DOI | 10.1177/0022018317702804 |
| Subject Matter | Comment |
Comment
Couldn’t Tell You Even If
I Wanted To? Anonymity
of Journalists’ Sources,
Voluntary Disclosure
and Abuse of Process
Elaine Freer
College Teaching Officer and Fellow in Law, Robinson College, Cambridge, UK and Barrister, 5 Paper Buildings (Chambers of
Miranda Moore QC and Julian Christopher QC)
Abstract
In October 2016, the Court of Appeal handed down judgment in Norman, an appeal against
conviction for misconduct in public office on the basis of information sold to a newspaper by a
serving prison officer. The particular interest in the appeal, however, comes from its wider
engagement of rights afforded by Article 10 ECHR and the interaction of that provision with
voluntary disclosure. The decision highlights that where information about a source is provided
voluntarily by a newspaper, the source will struggle to argue that Article 10 rights have been
infringed. This article explores the existing law on journalistic privilege and highlights the gap in
the precedents that means, even post Norman, there is no clear answer to a question likely to
be increasingly important in times of closer scrutiny of the media.
Keywords
Article 10 ECHR, media law, anonymous sources, misconduct in public office, voluntary
disclosure
Misconduct in public office is an ancient offence contrary to the common law. Mr Norman was a prison
officer at HMP Belmarsh. Over five years, he provided information to a journalist, Stephen Moyes.
When he did so, he was paid for that information, receiving a total of over £10,000.
1
This began while
Corresponding author:
Elaine Freer, 5 Paper Buildings (Chambers of Miranda Moore QC and Julian Christopher QC); CollegeTeaching Officer and Fellow
in Law, Robinson College, Cambridge, UK.
Email: ef@5pb.co.uk
1. [2016] EWCA Crim 1564 at 8.
The Journal of Criminal Law
2017, Vol. 81(3) 167–176
ªThe Author(s) 2017
Reprints and permissions:
sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav
DOI: 10.1177/0022018317702804
journals.sagepub.com/home/clj
To continue reading
Request your trial