Defamation (Amendment) Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed)
Seanad Éireann — 2025-11-12
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Rónán Mullen (IND), National University of Ireland

With regard to the ungrateful media, I often think of the story about Kelvin MacKenzie of The Sun after some journalists were wined and dined by some corporate interest seeing to curry favour. On the way back to Fleet Street and the office, MacKenzie said "Now, let us go stun them with our ingratitude". An ungrateful media is a cornerstone of our democracy but an accountable media is also essential in our democracy. There is a particular thing I rose to ask the Minister about that worries me. Perhaps I am wrong and perhaps my worries are misplaced but it might be something he will consider.
In looking at the question of whether a broadcaster of a live programme took reasonable and prudent precautions, how does this proposed section 27A link in, interact with, affect or be affected by the proposed new section 26, on "Publication on a matter of public interest"? How will the courts interpret the obligations about taking "reasonable and prudent precautions" in the new section 27A in light of what the new section 26 says? I am thinking about where you have a defamatory statement made in the context of a dispute. Let us take the example of somebody who makes an allegation of abuse against somebody. We know that the new section 26 proposes:
Where the statement in respect of which the defamation action was brought was an accurate and impartial account of a dispute to which the plaintiff in the defamation action was a party, the court shall, in determining whether it was reasonable for the defendant to believe that publishing the statement was in the public interest, disregard any omission of the defendant to take steps to verify the truth of the imputation conveyed by it.
This proposed section relates to circumstances in which there is a dispute between parties in which one levels an accusation against the other and "an accurate and impartial account" is given of what one side claims against the other. An "accurate and impartial account" merely reports what A alleges against B. We know that in that situation, there is no obligation on the defendant to have taken "steps to verify the truth". Will that colour the way the courts will interpret the obligations around taking "reasonable and prudent precautions"? Can we infer, from the absence of an obligation to take "steps to verify the truth of the imputation" in one situation, that the courts will not worry about whether steps were taken to verify the truth of an accusation?
Let us say it is in the context of a court dispute. If someone says in the context of a live audience debate that in his action for abuse against Mr. So-and-so, Sr. So-and-so, Dr. So-and-so or Minister So-and-so he has made certain claims, and if that matter that is already before the courts, I assume that there would be some kind of sub judice obligations there and that the failure of the broadcaster with regard to the party making an allegation relating to a matter before the courts would certainly fail the test of taking "reasonable and prudent precautions". However, let us suppose it is not before the courts; let us suppose it is a dispute, an allegation or claim. Let us suppose that A is out there making the most serious of allegations against B and it has not been tested in the courts. We know that it is okay to give "an accurate and impartial account" of that allegation and that you do not have to "take steps to verify" it. Does that mean we cannot expect there should be any obligation to take steps to verify it when the court is considering whether the broadcaster of a live programme had taken "reasonable and prudent precautions"? Is that a fair question for me to ask the Minister?

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2025-11-12/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:18+00:00
Sitting date: 2025-11-12