REVIEW: Defending the right to confidential sources and whistleblowers

Review of Journalists and Confidential Sources: Colliding Public Interests in the Age of the Leak, by Joseph M. Fernandez

Keywords: Australia, case studies, confidential sources, court cases, democracy, espionage, ethics, Fourth Estate, leaks, New Zealand, reviews, war correspondence

Abstract

Journalists and Confidential Sources: Colliding Public Interests in the Age of the Leak, by Joseph M Fernandez. Routledge Research on Journalism Series. Abingdon, UK: Routledge, 2021. 287 pages. ISBN 9780367474126

IN 2015, media law professor Joseph M. Fernandez co-authored a comprehensive article for Pacific Journalism Review (Fernandez & Pearson, 2015) about the status of Australia’s shield law regime, drawing on his research to see whether it met journalists’ expectations and whistleblower needs in an era of unprecedented official capabilities. It didn’t, as can be seen from growing concerns over court cases that, according to the peak journalists’ organisation Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA), ‘clearly demonstrate Australia’s patchy and desperate journalist shields fail to do their job’.

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Author Biography

David Robie

Professor David Robie
Associate Editor (Production), Pacific Journalism Review
Editor, Asia Pacific Report
https://www.facebook.com/PacificJournalismReview

References

Al Jazeera staff. (2024, May 12). Australian war crimes whistleblower David McBride jailed for six years. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/5/14/australian-war-crimes-whistleblower-david-mcbride-jailed-for-six-years

Carson, A. (2023, August 9). Catharsis, courage, a tribal media and lingering questions: two investigative journalists give their accounts of the Ben Roberts-Smith story, The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/catharsis-courage-a-tribal-media-and-lingering-questions-two-investigative-journalists-give-their-accounts-of-the-ben-roberts-smith-story-209494

Feng, T. (2024, January 9). Collaery secrecy saga ends, underscoring the need for transparency, whistleblowing reform. Human Rights Law Centre. https://www.hrlc.org.au/news/2024/01/09/secret-judgment

Fernandez, J., & Pearson, M. (2015). POLITICAL JOURNALISM: Shield laws in Australia: Legal and ethical implications for journalists and their confidential sources. Pacific Journalism Review : Te Koakoa, 21(1), 61-78. https://doi.org/10.24135/pjr.v21i1.148 DOI: https://doi.org/10.24135/pjr.v21i1.148

MEAA. (2021, November 1). Urgent action needed to rescue Australian journalism. Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance. https://www.meaa.org/mediaroom/urgent-action-needed-to-rescue-australian-journalism/

SBS. (2024, February 12). Only one ‘utterly fatal’ fact in Ben Roberts-Smith’s appeal is contested, Nine’s lawyers argue, AAP. https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/only-one-utterly-fatal-fact-in-ben-roberts-smiths-appeal-is-contested-nines-lawyers-argue/hird863qm

Whitbourn, M., & Hall, B. (2023, December 11). Kerry Stokes capitulates in fight over costs of Roberts-Smith defamation battle, The Sydney Morning Herald. https://www.smh.com.au/national/kerry-stokes-capitulates-in-fight-over-costs-of-roberts-smith-defamation-battle-20231211-p5eqi4.html

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Published
01-06-2024
How to Cite
Robie, D. (2024). REVIEW: Defending the right to confidential sources and whistleblowers: Review of Journalists and Confidential Sources: Colliding Public Interests in the Age of the Leak, by Joseph M. Fernandez. Pacific Journalism Review : Te Koakoa, 30(1and2), 270-273. https://doi.org/10.24135/pjr.v30i1and2.1364

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