By MARK PEARSON
Our Watch – the organisation working to prevent violence against women – invited me to be a panellist in a webinar focussed on the legal restrictions journalists face when reporting upon domestic and family violence (24/2/25).
The webinar, hosted by Our Watch and the RMIT Centre for Innovative Justice, featured two parts, with the first exploring the impacts of legal narratives and court processes on media reporting of violence against women.
My contribution was in part 2, which offered an introduction to the key legal and ethical topics confronting Australian journalists and strategic communicators and offering a suite of reflective techniques for navigating them.
Our part was hosted by Our Watch media implementation lead Rebekah Hayden and moderated by Elena Campbell, Associate Director – Research, Advocacy and Policy Centre for Innovative Justice, RMIT University.
Senior counsel at News Corp, Gina McWilliams, spoke first in our part, outlining the key legal considerations journalists need to consider when reporting upon violence against women – particularly matters that might be before the courts. She covered the main areas of defamation, contempt of court, identification restrictions and suppression orders.
My contribution focused on the interplay between defamation and contempt in the crucial sub judice period of a legal matter before moving into a range of reflective techniques reporters might use before publishing such a story, including mindful reflection, journalling, mindmapping, meeting with colleagues and seeking legal advice.
I also directed participants to key resources in the area, particularly the work by Annie Blatchford PhD on reporting family violence when there are legal restrictions, available at https://www.ourwatch.org.au/media-reporting/resources/tips-for-reporting-when-there-are-legal-restrictions
Keep an eye out for the publication of the webinar on the Our Watch site in coming weeks here: https://www.ourwatch.org.au/webinar-recordings
Disclaimer: While I write about media law and ethics, nothing here should be construed as legal advice. I am a retired academic, not a lawyer. My only advice is that you consult a lawyer before taking any legal risks.
© Mark Pearson 2025 – the moral right of the author has been asserted.