Hard News by Russell Brown

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Hard News: After the Deluge

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  • Russell Brown,

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 22850 posts Report Reply

  • Mrs Skin,

    Lawyers are obliged to act in their clients' interests so I can't blame Carter Ruck for trying, but I LOVE the response they got. KA-BOOM!

    the warmest room in the h… • Since Feb 2009 • 168 posts Report Reply

  • ScottY,

    Lawyers are obliged to act in their clients' interests so I can't blame Carter Ruck for trying, but I LOVE the response they got. KA-BOOM!

    Arguably lawyers are also obliged to tell their client they're being a dick.

    Given the negative publicity to Carter-Ruck's business, I'm sure they could have found a way not to be involved with this.

    West • Since Feb 2009 • 794 posts Report Reply

  • Stephen Judd,

    According to the Wikipedia bio, the firm's founder was not above generating work that was not in the clients' interest. He was ousted from the firm eventually, but perhaps he set a pattern.

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 3122 posts Report Reply

  • Mrs Skin,

    Arguably lawyers are also obliged to tell their client they're being a dick.

    Not just arguably. But really, a client who is allegedly prepared to dump toxic materials may just decide not take that considered advice on board. And then what?

    Regardless, I think all parties have got the message now.

    the warmest room in the h… • Since Feb 2009 • 168 posts Report Reply

  • ScottY,

    And then what?

    If you've being asked to facilitate conduct that might ultimately (as some have suggested) amount to comtempt of parliament, I don't think the Law Society will take too dim a view of your refusing to act.

    West • Since Feb 2009 • 794 posts Report Reply

  • Matthew Poole,

    The UK's suppression laws are really getting beyond the point of farce. When the very existence of an injunction can be ordered to be secret, something is spectacularly wrong with the system itself.
    I can understand it in national security cases - disagree even then, but at least understand the rationale - but the impression I took from the Guardian is that these "super-injunctions" are granted for run-of-the-mill bullshit that should be kept in the public's eye because it shows that the UK court system apparently cares little for open justice.

    Auckland • Since Mar 2007 • 4097 posts Report Reply

  • Matthew Poole,

    amount to comtempt of parliament

    It would be most excellent if the Speaker were to call C-R's bluff and initiate contempt proceedings. That shit needs to result in a thorough beating, if only to remind lawyers that there is much precedence for Parliamentary sovereignty and that no lesser legal mind than Denning has affirmed it.

    Auckland • Since Mar 2007 • 4097 posts Report Reply

  • Geoff Lealand,

    On Twitter (but I am still to return to the fold), here is an interesting piece by Henry Jenkins at MIT http://henryjenkins.org/2009/08/the_message_of_twitter.html

    Screen & Media Studies, U… • Since Oct 2007 • 2562 posts Report Reply

  • Geoff Lealand,

    Well pleased to find out that Matthew Weiner, the creator/exec producer of Mad Men , is a keynote speaker at the SPADA conference in Wellington next month.

    Screen & Media Studies, U… • Since Oct 2007 • 2562 posts Report Reply

  • Sacha,

    But he just fired Peggy.

    Ak • Since May 2008 • 19745 posts Report Reply

  • Geoff Lealand,

    But he just fired Peggy.

    Yikes! No rumours of pregnancy?

    Screen & Media Studies, U… • Since Oct 2007 • 2562 posts Report Reply

  • Idiot Savant,

    Meanwhile, our own Speaker thinks that freedom of speech applies to some, but not to others...

    Palmerston North • Since Nov 2006 • 1717 posts Report Reply

  • jeremy gray,

    And Keith Lockes bill to give us a referendum on whether to become a republic has been drawn from the members ballot.

    point chev • Since Apr 2008 • 44 posts Report Reply

  • George Darroch,

    Twitter just added a 'report as spam' button. About time.

    WLG • Since Nov 2006 • 2264 posts Report Reply

  • George Darroch,

    And Keith Lockes bill to give us a referendum on whether to become a republic has been drawn from the members ballot.

    I'd hope it will get past first reading, but I'd be surprised if it passed into law.

    WLG • Since Nov 2006 • 2264 posts Report Reply

  • Rich of Observationz,

    the UK court system apparently cares little for open justice.

    Maybe, but they don't have anything like the number of cases where name suppression is granted because the defendant is an All Black / National MP / TV presenter.

    Back in Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 5550 posts Report Reply

  • Tony Siu,

    Speaking of twitter coming of age into the mainstream media, I've done a mashup of combining tweets of NZ MPs onto a Google Map for a geography class 773 at UoA.

    This site is 3 weeks worth of work using PHP and Javascripts. It uses publicly available APIs and forward-facing tweets of all the current sitting MPs from National, Labour and the Greens.

    The web site, for some reason, only works with Internet Explorer (v6 RTM and v7 SP# tested on XP SP3, will test v8 tomorrow). For some reason, Firefox doesn't like the website and it won't load. Please have a look around.

    I look forward to your comments and suggestion

    Tony

    Auckland • Since Mar 2008 • 82 posts Report Reply

  • Matthew Poole,

    Maybe, but they don't have anything like the number of cases where name suppression is granted because the defendant is an All Black / National MP / TV presenter

    How do you know? If even reporting the existence of the injunction can be forbidden... More seriously, do you actually follow UK reporting? In all the local papers? It's visible here because we've got roughly two papers that cover the entire country - Granny and DomPost. That means that anything that gets reported in one of those has a national profile. The UK actually has functional regional papers.

    Auckland • Since Mar 2007 • 4097 posts Report Reply

  • Matthew Littlewood,

    Further to the discussion of the media's coverage Samoa Tsunami, here's a feature from a Timaru Herald co-worker writing about her father's role in the rescue missions. It's worth a read.

    For what it's worth, on the day the actual news broke, I thought Stuff.co.nz handled it better than the Herald's website, which stuck on the "New Zealand Tsunami threat" angle for too long after news of the damage the actual Tsunami had wrought on the Islands, to the point it seemed more than a little patronising. That said, the Herald rallied later in the week, and its coverage in the weekend edition was well done.

    However, I do feel that given news consumers increasing reliance on Stuff and NZ Herald online for "breaking" stories, and the subsequent pressures it entails on those who have to cover the events, it wouldn't be amiss for the news organisations to employ a larger online team in addition to the other departments, so there are more resources to pool on when something as massive as this happens.

    But then I would say that, wouldn't I? ;)

    As an aside, I thought a lot of Campbell Live's episodes during the week really excelled- good, sober reporting, using a fairly wide range of sources, well edited and filmed and exactly the sort of thing it should be doing more often.

    Today, Tomorrow, Timaru • Since Jan 2007 • 449 posts Report Reply

  • Kyle Matthews,

    It's visible here because we've got roughly two papers that cover the entire country - Granny and DomPost.

    Whowhat?

    You mean they cover national issues right, they don't cover south island news very well from what I've seen.

    Since Nov 2006 • 6243 posts Report Reply

  • John Farrell,

    Speaking of the harold....I'm currently in Auckland, and I've been surprised by the content of the local paper. It appears the ODT doesn't do such a bad job.....

    Dunedin • Since Nov 2006 • 499 posts Report Reply

  • Craig Ranapia,

    As an aside, I thought a lot of Campbell Live's episodes during the week really excelled- good, sober reporting,

    To be honest, I felt some of Campbell's reports rather cringe-inducing. I know journalists aren't emotionless Cylons, but I am capable of an emotional response without presenters getting into Judy Bailey 'Mummy of the Nation' mode. It's manipulative, patronises viewers as a pack of sociopaths and perversely ends up trivializing people who've been through unspeakable tragedy. It's a matter of tone and good old good taste.

    North Shore, Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 12370 posts Report Reply

  • Matthew Littlewood,

    Fair point Craig- I was going to say that the reports got better as the week went on, and yes, the early ones swayed too close to human interest for comfort. But there were a couple near the end about the thwarted attempts at reconstruction that were really well done.

    It is a balancing act, for sure.

    Today, Tomorrow, Timaru • Since Jan 2007 • 449 posts Report Reply

  • Craig Ranapia,

    It is a balancing act, for sure.

    Matthew: Certainly, and I don't want to be unfair. Three and CL did get it right by a gratifyingly large margin. For once, I've got plenty of kudos to dish out to the media because there's a very fine line between reporting on a matter of legitimate public interest (especially given the large Samoan communities here) and disaster pornographers feeding an insatiable appetite for photogenic suffering.

    And to be honest, if I'd been on the ground in Samoa during those first days I'd have been a useless crying, vomiting wreck. Full props to anyone who managed to keep their shit together at all, IMO.

    North Shore, Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 12370 posts Report Reply

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