GeniusWriter only

Libel

The ruthless nature of gaining readers for various publications often requires tenacious, attention grabbing headlines. While running the risk of portraying a vicious, discerning image of a person without necessary justification, media outlets are often seen as having libeled an individual. Libel is defamation by written or printed words, pictures, or in any form other than by spoken words or gestures (Greenslade, 2011).Christopher Jeffries became the victim of this practice when he was wrongly accused of the murder of Joanna Yeates in the United Kingdom (Greenslade, 2011). Jeffries’ image had been slandered in the media by eight different newspaper publications, and after being exonerated by the authorities he successfully sued each publication for libel damages. When news publications make damning accusations without proper information and to push a certain agenda, they will almost certainly have to pay the price in the end.

Libeling undoubtedly has become commonplace within the realm of journalism. Celebrities and professional athletes alike have had to deal with their name and image being rendered in a negative light through the press. In the era of real time news and reporting, nothing goes unscathed in regards to judgment. Although each person has the right to their own opinion, it shouldn’t come at the expense of degrading an individual’s character or morals. Oftentimes when libeling is present, there isn’t any factual evidence to support the claims. Jeffries a retired teacher, the landlord of Yeates was arrested on the suspicion of her murder in December of 2010. While in custody for the three days, The Sun published a photo of Jeffries with the headline “The strange Mr Jefferies – Kids’ nickname for ex-teacher suspect.” In an attempt to link the most plausible and fitting suspect at the time to the murder of Yeates, The Sun, The Daily Mirror and The Daily Star all published what they believed to be true with quotes from mainly unnamed sources who were former students of Jeffries. Jeffries was depicted as being creepy, a loner and in some extremes a homosexual who routinely made sexual advances to his pupils.

Jefferies was the landlord and so the suspicion arose from the fact that he was holding spare keys to each apartment he owned. Though the magazines implicated him, the evidence they claimed came from unknown individuals. Although he was implicated, some of his colleagues were never satisfied or believed the erroneous allegations. His former tenant Wendy, a neighbor Lowman, and his former head teacher Stuart when he taught at Clifton College among others were in the opposing side (Carthcart, 2011). They described him as a dedicated teacher and friendly always eager and willing to embrace positive change. In the village, he played a number of roles that were meant to help the community and as Lowman described, he was seen as a pillar of society (Carthcart, 2011).

Prior to the entire ordeal gaining steam the solicitor who advised Jeffries after he was taken into police custody, Bambos Tsiattabu, warned the media about what they were going to publish (Greensslade, 2011). He immediately wrote warning letters about the strong language they used to implicate an innocent citizen who was not yet proven guilty. This also forced the attorney general, Dominic Grieveto issue warnings to the editors on the contempt of court act that forbids the publication of material relating to an arrested person that was likely to prejudice a future jury against them.

References

Cathart, B. (2011, October 8). The Ordeal of Christopher Jeffries. FT Magazine. Retrieved from

www.ft.com/cms/s/2/22eac290-eee2-11e0-959a-00144feab49a.html#axzz2eVqt8z5X

Charalambous, L. (2011, August 4). Christopher Jefferies case delivers wake-up call to tabloids. The Guardian . Retrieved from http://www.theguardian.com/law/2011/aug/04/contempt-court-christopher-jefferies-tabloids

Christopher Jefferies, Wrongly Accused Of Jo Yeates Murder, Blasts UK Press. (2012, March 18). The Huffington Post United Kingdom. Retrieved from

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2012/03/18/christopher-jefferies-joanna-yates_n_1356637.html

Greenslade, R. (2011, July 29). Eight newspapers pay libel damages to Christopher Jefferies. The Guardian . Retrieved from http://www.theguardian.com/media/greenslade/2011/jul/29/joanna-yeates-national-newspapers