{"id":943,"date":"2022-09-21T13:50:30","date_gmt":"2022-09-21T12:50:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mediadefence.org\/ereader\/?post_type=publication&p=943"},"modified":"2022-09-22T10:57:00","modified_gmt":"2022-09-22T09:57:00","slug":"what-is-defamation","status":"publish","type":"publication","link":"https:\/\/www.mediadefence.org\/ereader\/publications\/modules-on-litigating-freedom-of-expression-and-digital-rights-in-south-and-southeast-asia\/module-5-defamation\/what-is-defamation\/","title":{"rendered":"What is Defamation?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Defamation is a false statement of fact that is harmful to someone\u2019s reputation.[footnote]Article 19, Defamation ABC at p. 1 (accessible at https:\/\/www.article19.org\/data\/files\/pdfs\/tools\/defamation-abc.pdf).\u00a0 Under some legal systems, especially common law jurisdictions such as India and Pakistan, libel is the term used for a written defamatory statement, while slander refers to spoken defamation. [1] ICCPR: International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1976) (accessible at https:\/\/www.ohchr.org\/en\/professionalinterest\/pages\/ccpr.aspx<\/a>).[\/footnote] The law of defamation dates back to the Roman Empire, but while the penalties and costs attached to defamation today are often not as serious as they once were, they can still have a notorious \u201cchilling effect,\u201d with prison sentences or massive compensation awards posing a particularly serious risk to freedom of expression, journalistic freedom, and dissent in many countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The foundation for defamation in international law is article 17 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR<\/a>), which provides for protection against unlawful attacks on a person\u2019s honour and reputation.\u00a0 Article 19(3) of the ICCPR also makes reference to the rights and reputation of others as a legitimate ground for restricting freedom of expression.[footnote]ICCPR: International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1976) (accessible at https:\/\/www.ohchr.org\/en\/professionalinterest\/pages\/ccpr.aspx<\/a>).[\/footnote] Reputation is therefore the underlying basis in any claim of defamation.[footnote]Article 19, Defamation ABC at p. 1 (accessible at https:\/\/www.article19.org\/data\/files\/pdfs\/tools\/defamation-abc.pdf).[\/footnote]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are many examples where defamation suits serve an important purpose in providing a remedy for victims of slanderous and harmful attacks on their reputations.\u00a0 However, defamation is also frequently misused, particularly by states and officials but also by non-state actors to stifle free speech, including through SLAPP suits.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Defamation is a false statement of fact that is harmful to someone\u2019s reputation.[footnote]Article 19, Defamation ABC at p. 1 (accessible at https:\/\/www.article19.org\/data\/files\/pdfs\/tools\/defamation-abc.pdf).\u00a0 Under some legal systems, especially common law jurisdictions such as India and Pakistan, libel is the term used for a written defamatory statement, while slander refers to spoken defamation. [1] ICCPR: International Covenant […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"parent":938,"menu_order":106,"template":"page-templates\/chapter.php","publication-category":[],"class_list":["post-943","publication","type-publication","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhat is Defamation? | eReader<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.mediadefence.org\/ereader\/publications\/modules-on-litigating-freedom-of-expression-and-digital-rights-in-south-and-southeast-asia\/module-5-defamation\/what-is-defamation\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What is Defamation? | eReader\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Defamation is a false statement of fact that is harmful to someone\u2019s reputation.[footnote]Article 19, Defamation ABC at p. 1 (accessible at https:\/\/www.article19.org\/data\/files\/pdfs\/tools\/defamation-abc.pdf).\u00a0 Under some legal systems, especially common law jurisdictions such as India and Pakistan, libel is the term used for a written defamatory statement, while slander refers to spoken defamation. 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