Role of Media in Courtrooms and Legal Proceedings

About the Author

*This Article is authored by Adv.Aamina Rafeek, an advocate currently Practicing at Ernakulam*.

A free press can be good or bad, but most certainly without freedom, a press will never be anything, but bad”
– Albert Camus (French philosopher, journalist, activist)

Introduction

Media and journalism plays a pivotal role in the shaping of opinions in our society. They act as the gatekeepers of how information is shared and understood. In India, the Freedom of press is an implied fundamental right under Article 19 of the Constitution of India i.e. freedom of speech and expression. However with the passage of time, the media has reincarnated itself into public courts, interfering into court proceedings. In its race to top the TRP charts, many media houses distort facts and sensationalize the news, which altogether creates a different impression in minds of people which is far from reality.

Walter Cronkite, the famous American journalist and news anchor has once said, “We all have our likes and our dislikes. But… when we’re doing news — when we’re doing the front-page news, not the back page, — it is our duty to be sure that we do not permit our prejudices to show. That is simply basic journalism.” Since accessibility to media is so wide in the present scenario, its impact is also multi fold. Therefore, it is important to ensure that one’s personal biases are not reflected in the reporting as it would produce an amplified effect.

Legal Journalism- Emergence and Importance

It is a known fact that the court proceedings and language are not often comprehensible to people outside the legal fraternity. The various Latin legal maxims and the judgments running for over 200 pages are not a common man’s cup of tea. But in a democratic society like ours, public ought to stay updated on the court verdicts in various matters. This is because true freedom of expression can be exercised only when you have access to information. This has paved the way for the development of a new field of study and career opportunity termed as legal journalism. Reporters trained in this field are bound to diligently report the court proceedings and verdicts in simplified versions which are understandable to the public, without deflecting from its true sense. The essence of the proceedings are not to be lost while interpreting and summarizing. Justice must not only be done, it must be seen to be done. Journalists through their reporting of court cases has to ensure this. Other than mere reporting, legal journalists also critically analyse the court judgement through separate articles and stories. This helps the public to view the matter from different perspectives and also provides them with an informed opinion. Thus, the participation of public in social matters can be increased by such impartial and effective reporting, resulting in an effective democracy.

Influence of Media and Media trial in the society

*Image Source : Centre for Academic Legal Research*

The stories of the consequences of media trial dates back to the 1921 case of Roscoe Arbuckle, an American silent actor. Mr.Arbuckle was accused of rape and murder of an aspiring actress, Virginia Rappe ¹ and the court after the trial found him not guilty. However by that time he was blacklisted from movies and had lost his reputation in society as the media had scandalized the issue, declaring him a rapist and murderer. He found it extremely difficult to fit in the society thereafter. While discussing the detrimental impacts of the media, some of its groundbreaking interventions to provide justice cannot be disregarded. In the UK case of Stephen Downing, who was convicted for murder at the age of 17, a local newspaper editor’s report was a successful appeal which lead to his release 27 years after conviction². Similarly, in the Jessica Lal Murder Case, the SMS campaign “Justice for Jessica” launched by NDTV in the aftermath of the acquittal of the accused in 2006 led to a reversal of verdict and conviction of the guilty³. But in the long run, such investigation and trials by the media can destabilize rules established by law and it may also result in various errors.⁴

Without active media, the cries of the victims of the brutal khap killings of Haryana would have gone unheard. The fear of khap and the backing of police and politicians allowed this barbarous tradition to continue for a long time until they turned out in front of the world through the media.

The Shalini Malhotra case, which would have been forgotten as another suicide case, as most brides who end up being burned to death are labelled, was identified to be a clear case of murder when a 32 minute video of Shalini’s testimony of being set to fire by her husband was released on Aaj Tak TV News Channel. What made this a landmark criminal case is that perhaps for the first time the police intend to use TV footage as evidence. The Court also considered the tape as corroborative evidence.

Judiciary is one of the three branches of government. There is a great deal of public interest in what the courts do, particularly in criminal cases. It is important to build a public trust in the judicial system of our country. To a large extent, the media is capable to perform this task . Coverage of criminal justice can demonstrate to the public how justice is served and criminals are punished. Coverage of the courts can also expose unfairness in the system, either for victims or defendants, that the public may want to lobby its representatives to correct. Coverage may also help prevent injustices by throwing light on the actions of judges, lawyers and other participants in the justice system.⁵
The presence of media in courtroom ensures transparency and fairness in court proceedings. Now,Real time updates on the progress of the hearings are available to the general public. There are several news houses working in this area of courtroom reporting such as Live Law, Bar and Bench, etc which works with the belief that the information about the judiciary will make it more accountable, thereby strengthening its role in constitutional democracy. Hence, the work of a legal journalist is crucial as it is through them the majority of general public views the action of judiciary. They hold the power to create both respect and contempt towards judiciary. Therefore the reporting must comply with certain standards and parameters. Bonafide criticisms and analysis of court verdicts are encouraged, however the same should not be weaponized to maliciously tarnish the judges and the authority of court. Privacy of victims, witnesses and information of significant evidences are to be protected and should not be revealed at any cost in the name of freedom of press. There are parameters to the news-gathering process, and to breach them may not only be unethical – it may be illegal as well. Just because a person is a member of the press, does not give them any rights to break laws to get the information that they are looking for. ⁶

Media & Judiciary : the inextricable branches of Democracy

A strong media and independent judiciary are indispensable aspects of a democratic state. Therefore it is necessary to strike a balance between the two in such a way that they do not unreasonably intervene in each other’s spheres. Regulations of media content by courts are often disputed. It is argued to defeat the purpose of an independent press. However reasonable regulations are necessary to curb possibilities of spreading misinformation and violence among people as a result of sensationalism. Thus the Media houses must strictly follow self-regulation. The Press Council Of India regulates content in printed media. The News Broadcasters Association has devised a Code of Ethics to regulate television content. The News Broadcasting Standards Authority (NBSA), of the NBA, is empowered to warn, censure, express disapproval and fine the broadcaster a sum up to Rs.1 lakh for violation of the ethics code. Another such organization is the Broadcast Editors’ Association. The Advertising Standards Council of India has also drawn up guidelines on the content of advertisements. These bodies are governed through agreements and do not have any statutory powers.

In short the role of media in courtrooms can be summarized in the following four points-
■ It acts as a watchdog of democracy.
■ It conveys messages, builds opinion and creates awareness among people.
■ It plays a crucial role in shaping a healthy democracy.
■ It acts as an interface between common man and judiciary.

For effective reporting a court reporter must keep in mind certain points while reporting the cases :
■ Knowledge of court jurisdictions, processes and hierarchy of courts
■ Basic knowledge of frequently used common legal terms
■ Credible news sources- A court clerk who prepares and keeps court records is the
key person for a reporter as court reporting involves diligent checking of records to ensure correctness.
■ Chronological follow up of cases.
■ Highlighting and emphasizing important quotes of judges.
All this can contribute in giving a clear and unbiased picture of the case to public for scrutiny. Therefore it is important to understand the significance of an impartial court reporter in a democratic society.

Conclusion

Justice Fali S. Nariman, had once observed, “A responsible press is the handmaiden of effective judicial administration. The Press does not simply publish information about cases and trials but, subjects the entire justice hierarchy (police, prosecutors, lawyers, Judges, Courts), as well as the judicial processes, to public scrutiny. Free and robust reporting, criticism and debate contribute to public understanding of the rule of law, and to a better comprehension of the entire Justice system. It also helps improve the quality of that system by subjecting it to the cleansing effect of exposure and public accountability.”

Footnotes