What is Libel and Slander and how can it be avoided?

Those that are not into journalism do not understand than importance of news and they do not understand the rules and regulations towards the matter. Both libel and slander have to do with defamation. Defamation means the action of damaging the good reputation of someone. Slander is any defamation that is heard or spoken and libel is defamation that is seen; such as: writing, printing etc. All three of these words all correspond to each other and in order to prevent any of this you need to have a good firm understanding of each one. Prevention is important because in my opinion the point in writing news and finding news isn’t to “ruin” someone’s reputation, but to simply give awareness to the public. If a journalist is doing a story out of spit that is wrong and they are not doing their job as they should be. No story should be done to sabotage another. It is illegal in some places to write about anything false about another person. That’s why they say it is different to criticize someone and slander and libel them.

In order to prevent libel and slander one need to make sure that all there information is accurate and can be proven. For example: one doesn’t want to call someone a murderer if they don’t have evidence to back up the accusation. I know with this confidentiality comes to mind, but most of the time a journalist cannot protect his/hers sources because it is not in the constitution, but has been interpreted to be a journalist’s privilege in a number of state and federal cases. This is where it can become tricky and confusing to some, especially when it comes to the electronic part of slander and libel. In some countries posting on the web, radio and even the television can be considered slander and libel. The purpose of having slander and libel laws is so that it is protection from untruthful information.

Slander and libel can also be commonly mistaken. Many journalists don’t realize that they are slandering and libeling. This common mistake can be avoided by not repeating rumors that you have heard, repeating information that others have given you that you know or do not trust, drawing conclusions you know you do not know if the situation is going to end like that, representing all sides of the situation; you never want to just stick to one side of an argument because then it may seem as though you are sabotaging the other, and finally watch the use of adjectives; words get misconstrued all the time and you don’t want something as simple as an adjective to send out the wrong impression.

If you or someone you know is accused of slander and libel you must first seek legal advice before responding to the complaint in any way. Then you want to withdraw the original statement and do more research on the information in which you presented that way you know what your talking about and you are sure that the source in which you go it from is accurate. It is very important to be truthful and honest. It is different to report something because you truly care about notifying others and reporting something out of spite and sabotage.

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libel_and_slander

http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Libel+and+Slander

http://www.wisegeek.org/what-is-the-difference-between-slander-and-libel.htm

http://www.socialbrite.org/2009/08/08/preventing-against-online-libel-and-defamation/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/collective/A1183394

http://www.slideshare.net/hollykatharine/libel-what-is-it-and-how-to-avoid-it