Privacy and press : balancing the right to know and the right to be left alone

Abstract

In this thesis I have attempted to delineate the difficulties encountered in balancing freedom of expression and the right to privacy. The right to freedom of expression has up to recently been afforded greater protection owing to its importance in a democratic society. As far as a definition is possible, I have tried to give the meaning and extent of both these rights but I have focused more on the right to privacy because privacy is afforded less attention. I have also dealt with the exceptions to these rights. I have followed carefully the development of privacy rights in both the U.K. and the U.S.A. In the U.K. the right to privacy was quite neglected until the enactment of the Human Rights Act in 1998. U.K judgments may now be challenged in the European Court of Human Rights and this has made the U.K. judges more sensitive to issues of privacy. As far as the U.S.A. is concerned, I have delved particularly into the influence that the Warren and Brandeis Doctrine (1890) has had on the development of a right to privacy. Today many states have passed statutes to protect these rights. I have also dealt with the few salient Maltese cases that have helped create a discussion and debate about the balancing of these rights. Later I also gave my opinion about the lack of awareness that exists about privacy rights in Malta. Besides I have chosen a few case studies of some notorious recent instances which helped develop and define the extent of both rights. I have considered the merits and demerits of self-regulatory bodies. I tried to show how by themselves these may not be sufficient to curb the excesses of the media. In my conclusion, I made my case for statutory provision for the protection of privacy that, side by side with self-regulation, would establish the parameters within which the right to know and the right to be left alone can be safeguarded.