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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 January 2025
This article provides the first comprehensive study of statutory definitions of ‘journalist’ and ‘journalism' in Australian law and proposes a preferred definition of journalist by reference to statutory aims, bedrock legal principles and broader scholarship. It begins with a review of existing literature on the meaning of ‘journalist' in the modern media landscape, before turning to Australian law. A qualitative survey of legislation identified 11 textually different definitions of the term ‘journalist’ across 18 separate statutes, and a single definition of ‘journalism’. Examination of the statutory contexts, purposes and framing of these definitions reveals they are comprised, broadly, of six ‘approaches’. These approaches are critically analysed against a novel five-part thematic framework, with particular attention given to whether journalists should be defined by reference to ethical codes and responsibilities. The article concludes by identifying a preferred definition of journalist capable of informing law reform across a wide-variety of areas of law, including protections for press freedom, journalistic access to information, shield laws and whistleblower protections.
The author is indebted to the editors, anonymous reviewers, Associate Professor Johan Lidberg, Professor Peter Greste and Dr Richard Murray for their valuable input, as well as to Dominic Frost for his exceptional research assistance. The views here are also informed by discussions with members of the NSW Law Reform Commission’s ‘Open Justice Review’ and Queensland Attorney-General, the Hon Shannon Fentiman. The author’s research has been supported by a grant from the Estate of Douglas Slatter and Elizabeth Chambers and a donation from David and Diane Brown.
1. Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security, Parliament of Australia, Inquiry into the Impact of the Exercise of Law Enforcement and Intelligence Powers on the Freedom of the Press (Report, August 2020) 36, 82 (‘PJCIS Report’); Senate Environment and Communications References Committee, Inquiry into Press Freedom (Report, May 2021) 68 (‘Senate Report’).
2. Australian Law Reform Commission, The Future of Law Reform: A Suggested Program of Work 2020–25 (Report, 2 December 2019).
3. Evidence and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2022 (Qld). The relevant provisions came into force by proclamation, effective 12 September 2022, and now appear in Evidence Act 1977 (Qld) pt 2 div 2B.
4. New South Wales Law Reform Commission, Open Justice: Court and Tribunal Information: Access, Disclosure and Publication (Consultation paper 22, December 2020) 215–233.
5. Evidence Act 1995 (Cth) s 126K; Evidence Act 1995 (NSW) s 126K; Evidence Act 1929 (SA) s 72B; Evidence (National Uniform Legislation) Act 2011 (NT) s 127A (‘NT Evidence Act’); Evidence Act 2011 (ACT) s 126K; Evidence Act 1906 (WA) s 20I; Evidence Act 2001 (Tas) s 126B; Evidence Act 2008 (Vic) s 126K. For discussion, see Hannah Ryan, ‘What’s in a Name? Bloggers, Journalism, and Shield Laws’ [2014] 33(4) Communications Law Bulletin 10, 12; see also Stephen Odgers, Uniform Evidence Law (Thomson Reuters, 2018) 1078–1091, 1095, 1200–1207.
6. See, eg, PJCIS Report (n 1) xx, 36, 82.
7. For discussion, see: Australian Law Reform Commission, The Future of Law Reform (Update, October 2020) 7–9.
8. PJCIS Report (n 1) 116; Senate Report (n 1) 51–75; AJ Brown, ‘Safeguarding our Democracy: Whistleblower Protection after the Australian Federal Police Raids’ (Tenterfield Oration, The Henry Parkes Foundation, 26 October 2019) 2. See also calls for a Media Freedom Act discussed in, eg, Senate Report (n 1) [7.47]–[7.60].
9. Broadcasting Services Act 1992 (Cth) s 202(5); Evidence Act 1995 (Cth) s 126J(1); Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) s 1317AAD(3); Public Interest Disclosure Act 2010 (Qld) s 20(4) (‘Qld PIDA’); Public Interest Disclosure Act 1994 (NSW) s 4 (‘NSW PIDA’); Court Security Act 2005 (NSW) s 4 (‘NSW Security Act’); Evidence Act 1995 (NSW) s 126J(1); Evidence Act 2008 (Vic) s 126J(1); Evidence Act 1906 (WA) s 20G; Public Interest Disclosure Act 2003 (WA) s 7A(1) (‘WA PIDA’); Evidence Act 1929 (SA) s 72; Public Interest Disclosure Act 2018 (SA) s 4 (‘SA PIDA’); Court Security Act 2017 (Tas) s 3 (‘Tas Security Act’); Right to Information Act 2009 (Tas) s 5(1) (‘Tas RTI Act’); Evidence Act 2011 (ACT) s 126(1); NT Evidence Act (n 5) s 127A(6).
10. Victoria Police Act 2013 (Vic) s 235.
11. A rare case example is presented by Kumova v Davison [2021] FCA 753 (‘Kumova’).
12. Jared Schroeder, ‘Focusing on How Rather than on Whom: Constructing a Process-Based Framework for Interpreting the Press Clause in the Network-Society Era’ (2014) 19(4) Communication Law and Policy 509, 510.
13. New Zealand Law Commission, The News Media Meets ‘New Media’: Rights, Responsibilities and Regulation in the Digital Age (Report 128, March 2013) 53.
14. See, eg, Clay Calvert, ‘And You Call Yourself a Journalist: Wrestling with a Definition of Journalist in Law’ (1998) 103(2) Dickinson Law Review 411; Katherine Fulton, Michael Rogers and Ellen Schneider, ‘What Is Journalism and Who Is a Journalist When Everyone Can Report and Edit News?’ (1994) 48(2) Nieman Reports 10; Mark Hampton, ‘Defining Journalists in Late-Nineteenth Century Britain’ (2005) 22(2) Critical Studies in Mass Communication 138; David Weaver and G Cleveland Wilhoit, The American Journalist in the 1990s (May 1993) <https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED361702>.
15. See, eg, Alan Knight, Alex Gerlis and George Cherian, ‘Who Is a Journalist?’ (2008) 9(1) Journalism Studies 117; William E Lee, ‘Citizen-Critics, Citizen Journalists, and the Perils of Defining the Press Symposium: The Press and Constitution 50 Years after New York Times v. Sullivan: Panel 1: The Supreme Court and the Press Clause: A Complicated Relationship’ (2013) 48(3) Georgia Law Review 757; Deborah S Chung, Yung Soo Kim and Seungahn Nah, ‘A Comparison of Professional versus Citizen Journalistic Roles: Views from Visual Journalists’ (2020) 26(1) Convergence 210; Tara Mortensen, Ana Keshelashvili and Tom Weir, ‘Who We Are’ (2016) 4(3) Digital Journalism 359, 372.
16. See, eg, John O’Sullivan and Ari Heinonen, ‘Old Values, New Media; Journalism Role Perceptions in a Changing World’ (2008) 2(3) Journalism Practice 357; Jane B Singer, ‘Who Are These Guys?: The Online Challenge to the Notion of Journalistic Professionalism’ (2003) 4(2) Journalism 139.
17. Jane Johnston and Anne Wallace, ‘Who Is a Journalist?: Changing Legal Definitions in a De-Territorialised Media Space’ (2017) 5(7) Digital Journalism 850, 851.
18. Mark Deuze and Tamara Witschge, ‘Beyond Journalism: Theorizing the Transformation of Journalism’ (2018) 19 Journalism 19(2) 165, 177.
19. Johnston and Wallace (n 17) 851.
20. Mark Deuze, ‘On the Roles of Journalists, the News Industry and Journalism in Assessing the Future of the Field: A Rejoinder to Tabe Bergman’ (2019) 12 Synaesthesia: Communication across Cultures 15.
21. Kumova (n 11).
22. Ibid [36] (emphasis removed).
23. Janet Fulton, ‘Are You a Journalist? New Media Entrepreneurs and Journalists in the Digital Space’ (2015) 22(4) Javnost — The Public 362, 371.
24. Ibid 367.
25. Barbie Zelizer, ‘Why Journalism Is About More Than Digital Technology’ (2019) 7(3) Digital Journalism 343, 349; Gregory P Perreault and Patrick Ferrucci, ‘What Is Digital Journalism? Defining the Practice and Role of the Digital Journalist’ (2020) 8(10) Digital Journalism 1298, 1312.
26. Gregory Perreault and Patrick Ferrucci, ‘What is Digital Journalism? Defining the Practice and Role of the Digital Journalist’ (2020) 8(10) Digital Journalism 1298, 1312.
27. Knight, Gerlis and Cherian (n 15) 127.
28. Jane B Singer, ‘The Socially Responsible Existentialist: A Normative Emphasis for Journalists in a New Media Environment’ (2006) 7(1) Journalism Studies 2, 9, 14.
29. Ryan (n 5) 12.
30. [2014] NZHC 222. For discussion of the case and its impact, see, eg, Ibid 11–12.
31. Singer (n 28) 14.
32. Ibid 15.
33. Ibid 14–15.
34. Stephen JA Ward, ‘Journalism Ethics from the Public’s Point of View’ (2005) 6(3) Journalism Studies 315, 328.
35. See generally Arthur S Hayes, Jane B Singer and Jerry Ceppos, ‘Shifting Roles, Enduring Values: The Credible Journalist in a Digital Age’ (2007) 22(4) Journal of Mass Media Ethics 262.
36. Ibid 268.
37. Zelizer (n 25) 349.
38. Ibid.
39. Ibid 560–561.
40. Ivor Shapiro, ‘Why Democracies Need a Functional Definition of Journalism Now More than Ever’ (2014) 15(5) Journalism Studies 555, 559.
41. Schroeder (n 12) 561. See also Ryan (n 5) 11; Human Rights Law Centre, Submission to Department of Justice and Attorney-General (Qld), Shielding Confidential Sources: Balancing the Public’s Right to Know and the Court’s Need to Know (13 July 2021) 7 (‘HRLC Submission’).
42. Schroeder (n 12) 558–9.
43. Ibid 558, 562. See also Tim Gleason, ‘If We Are All Journalists, Can Journalistic Privilege Survive?’ (2015) 22(4) Javnost — The Public 375, 377, 384.
44. See Deuze (n 20). See also Tabe Bergman, ‘What Mainstream Journalism Unfortunately Is and Does – and Why That Still Matters: A Reply to Mark Deuze’ (2019) 7 Synaesthesia: Communication across Cultures 12.
45. Gary Ross, ‘Espionage, the First Amendment, and the Case Against Julian Assange’ (2020) 33(4) International Journal of Intelligence and Counterintelligence 747, 762.
46. Deuze (n 20) 16.
47. s 87(1).
48. Sales Tax (Exemptions and Classifications) Act 1935 (Cth) sch 1 s 1(1) (definition of ‘author/secretary equipment’ para (b)(iv)) as at 1 July 1993; Geneva Conventions Act 1957 (Cth) sch 5 art 79; Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) s 69ZX(4)(a)(i); Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act 1979 (Cth) s 5 (‘TIA Act’); Securities Industry Act 1980 (Cth) s 87(1); Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) s 66(1A); Corporations Act 1989 (Cth) (as enacted) s 879(1); Broadcasting Services Act 1992 (Cth) ss 202(4)(a)–(5); Criminal Code 1995 (Cth) s 122.5(6)(b)(ii), 119.2(3)(f) (‘Criminal Code’); Evidence Act 1995 (Cth) s 126J(1); Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) s 1317AAD(3); Securities Industry Act 1971 (Qld) s 30; Securities Industry Act 1975 (Qld) s 73(1); Guardianship and Administrations Act 2000 (Qld) s 111; Right to Information Act 2009 (Qld) s 24(2)(d) (‘Qld RTI Act’); Qld PIDA (n 9) s 20; Securities Industry Act 1975 (NSW) s 73; NSW PIDA (n 9) ss 73–4, 76, 121; Evidence Act 1995 (NSW) ss 126J(1)–126K; NSW Security Act (n 9) s 4; Securities Industry Act 1975 (Vic) ss 73–4, 76, 121; Whistleblowers Protection Act 2001 (Vic) s 10A, 56A; Police Integrity Act 2008 (Vic) 69A; Evidence Act 2008 (Vic) div 1C; Victorian Inspectorate Act 2011 (Vic) s 69; Independent Broad-Based Anti-corruption Commission Act 2011 (Vic) s 99, 145; Judicial Commission of Victoria Act 2016 (Vic) s 91; Ombudsman Regulations 2019 (Vic) sch 1; Evidence Act 1906 (WA) ss 20A, 20G–20L; Securities Industry Act 1970 (WA) s 24; Securities Industry Act 1975 (WA) ss 73–7, 121; WA PIDA (n 9) s 7A, 18A; Chiropractors Act 2005 (WA) s 102(1)(d); Medical Radiation Technologists Act 2006 (WA) s 100(1)(e); Nurses and Midwives Act 2006 (WA) s 107(1)(d); Medical Practitioners Act 2008 (WA) s 153(1)(d); Occupational Therapists Act 2005 (WA) s 102(1)(d); Pharmacy Act 2010 (WA) s 69(1)(d); Optometrists Act 2005 (WA) s 102(1)(d); Osteopaths Act 2005 (WA) s 101(1)(d); Physiotherapists Act 2005 (WA) 102(1)(d); Podiatrists Act 2005 (WA) s 102(1)(d); Psychologists Act 2005 (WA) s 101(1)(d); Western Australia College of Teaching Act 2004 (WA) s 80(2)(d); Evidence Act 1929 (SA) pt 8A; SA PIDA (n 9) ss 4, 6–7; Tas Security Act (n 9) ss 3, 8, 11; Tas RTI Act (n 9) ss 5(1), 16(2)(ba); State Service (Savings and Transitional Provisions) Act 2000 (Tas) sch 2 item 8(c); Evidence Act 2011 (ACT) div 3.10.1C; ACT PIDA (n 9) s 19A, pt 5; NT Evidence Act (n 5) s 127A; Qld Evidence Act (n 3) div 2B.
49. Privacy Act 1998 (Cth) s 7B(4); Australian Broadcasting Corporation Act 1983 (Cth) s 8(1)(c); Evidence Act (Vic) s 126J(2); Serious Offenders Act 2018 (Vic) s 277(3); Victoria Police Act 2013 (Vic) s 235(1).
50. Court Information Act 2010 (NSW) s 10; Court Suppression and Non-Publication Orders Act 2010 (NSW) s 3; District Court Act 1973 (NSW) s 178; Supreme Court Act 1970 (NSW) s 127; Surrogacy Act 2010 (NSW) s 53; Open Courts Act 2013 (Vic) s 3; a definition adopted in Court Security Act 1980 (Vic) s 2(1); Supreme Court (Fees) Regulations 2018 (Vic) reg 5.
51. Criminal Procedure Rules 2005 (WA) rule 51; Magistrates Court (General) Rules 2005 (WA) rule 40A.
52. Victoria Police Act 2013 (Vic) s 235(1); Serious Sex Offenders (Detention and Supervision) Act 2009 (Vic) s 182.
53. Summary Offences Act 1953 (SA) s 36.
54. Securities Industry Act 1980 (Cth) s 8(1); Securities Industry Act 1975 (Qld) s 73; Securities Industry Act 1975 (NSW) s 73; Securities Industry Act 1975 (Vic) s 73; Securities Industry Act 1975 (WA) s 73; Corporations Act 1989 (Cth) (as enacted) s 879(1).
55. Broadcasting Services Amendment (Digital Television and Datacasting) Act 2000 (Cth) s 53.
56. NSW Security Act (n 9) ss 6(2), 9(2)(d); Tas Security Act (n 9) ss 8(2), 11(4)(b)(ii).
57. Victoria Police Act 2013 (Vic) s 238.
58. Tas RTI Act (n 9) s 16(2)(ba).
59. This table is current as at 1 June 2022.
60. The Public Interest Disclosure Act 2013 (Cth) avoided the difficulties arising from defining journalist by allowing for protected external disclosures to anyone (other than a foreign public official): s 8.
61. Evidence Act 2011 (ACT) s 131A(2); Evidence Act 1995 (NSW) s 131A(2); Evidence Act 1939 (NT) s 131A(2); Evidence Act 1977 (Qld) s 14R; Evidence Act 2008 (Vic) s 131A(2). Department of Justice and Attorney-General, Shielding Confidential Sources: Balancing the Public’s Right to Know and the Court’s Need to Know (Consultation Paper, June 2021) (‘DJAG Consultation Paper’) 17. For arguments in support of extending shield laws to administrative proceedings, see HRLC Submission (n 41) 7, 11, 16.
62. Broadcasting Services Act 1992 (Cth) s 202.
63. Evidence Act 1995 (Cth) s 126K(2); Evidence Act 2011 (ACT) s 126K(2); Evidence Act 1995 (NSW) s 126K(2); NT Evidence Act (n 5) s 127A(2); Evidence Act 1929 (SA) s 72B(4); Evidence Act 2001 (Tas) s 126B(4)(i)–(j); Evidence Act 2008 (Vic) s 126K(2) Evidence Act 1906 (WA) s 20J(2).
64. Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) s 1317AAD(1).
65. Human Rights Committee, General Comment No 34: Article 19, Freedoms of Opinion and Expression, 102nd sess, UN Doc CCPR/C/GC/34 (12 September 2011) [19], [45].
66. At the time of writing, the ACT and NT have only one operative definition of journalist each: Evidence Act 2011 (ACT) s 126J; NT Evidence Act (n 5) s 127A(6).
67. NSW PIDA (n 9) s 4; Evidence Act 1995 (NSW) s 126J(1); NSW Security Act (n 9) s 4.
68. Kumova (n 11) [16].
69. Our research revealed at least 53 statutes that mention journalist or journalism, see (n 48).
70. The amendments to the Act were animated by the creation of the ACT Integrity Commission and a 2019 independent review of the Act: Australian Capital Territory, Parliamentary Debates, Legislative Assembly, 27 August 2020, 2213 (Andrew Barr). That independent report did not mention the definition of journalist then in the Act: Ingrid Haythorpe and Tahnya Donaghy, Review of the Public Interest Disclosure Act 2012 (ACT) (PEG Consulting, 30 September 2019).
71. TIA Act (n 48) s 5 (emphasis added).
72. Criminal Code (n 48) s 119.2 (emphasis added).
73. These factors are discussed further: see above part V(A).
74. Criminal Code (n 48) s 122.5(6) (emphasis added), as inserted by National Security Legislation Amendment (Espionage and Foreign Interference) Act 2018 (Cth).
75. See, eg, PJCIS Report (n 1) 83, 88, 100, 104, 131; Senate Report (n 1) 39, 41, 85.
76. Evidence Act 1995 (NSW) s 126J; Evidence Act 1906 (WA) s 20G; Evidence Act 1929 (SA) s 72; SA PIDA (n 9) s 4.
77. Ibid. The same definition appears in: Evidence Act 1995 (Cth) s 126J; Evidence Act 2011 (ACT) s 126J.
78. WA PIDA (n 9) s 7A(1).
79. NSW PIDA (n 9) s 4; Qld PIDA (n 9) s 20(4).
80. Evidence Act 2008 (Vic) s 126J(1) (emphasis added).
81. Ibid s 126J(2)(b)–(c) (emphasis added).
82. Ibid s 126J(2)(d).
83. NT Evidence Act (n 5) s 127A(6).
84. Ibid.
85. Ibid.
86. (n 3) s 14R.
87. Ibid (emphasis added).
88. Evidence Act 1995 (Cth) s 126J; Evidence Act 2011 (ACT) s 126J.
89. This same definition also appeared in the Public Interest Disclosure Act 2012 (ACT) s 27(5), until 2020: Public Interest Disclosure Amendment Act 2020 (ACT).
90. Evidence Act 1995 (Cth) s 126J; Evidence Act 2011 (ACT) s 126J.
91. Kumova (n 11) [44] (emphasis removed).
92. Ibid [64].
93. Evidence Amendment (Journalists’ Privilege) Bill 2010 (Cth) sch 1.
94. Commonwealth, Parliamentary Debates, House of Representatives, 21 March 2011, 2393–4 (Andrew Wilkie).
95. Evidence Act 1995 (Cth) s 126J(1); Evidence Act 2011 (ACT) s 126J.
96. Ibid.
97. This is consistent with the Attorney-General’s comments in Parliament, eg, Commonwealth, Parliamentary Debates, House of Representatives, 21 March 2011, 2394 (Robert McClelland) (emphasis added), quoted in Kumova (n 11) [12].
98. Kumova (n 11).
99. Ibid [32].
100. Ibid [33], quoting Evidence Act 2008 (Vic) s 126J(1).
101. Ibid [12], quoting McClelland (n 97).
102. HRLC Submission (n 41) 7.
103. Victoria Police Act 2013 (Vic) s 235(1). I note, the Act goes on to define a ‘media organisation’ simply as ‘a person or body that engages in journalism’: s 235(1).
104. NSW Security Act (n 9) s 4.
105. Broadcasting Services Act 1992 (Cth) s 202(5).
106. Datacasting was added to the definition because Australia was making the move to digital broadcasting. Since it was a new system, Australian legislation around licencing and obligations needed to reflect the change: Kim Jackson, ‘Digital Television and Datacasting’, Parliament of Australia (e-brief, 16 June 2003) <https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/Publications_Archive/archive/Digitaltelevision>.
107. Evidence Act 1995 (NSW) s 126J; Evidence Act 1929 (SA) s 72; Evidence Act 1906 (WA) s 20G; SA PIDA (n 9) s 4.
108. Tas RTI Act (n 9) s 5(1); Tas Security Act (n 9) s 3.
109. Ibid (emphasis added).
110. Punishable by up to 200 penalty units, 12 months’ imprisonment, or both in NSW, and 50 penalty units in Tasmania: NSW Security Act (n 9) ss 6(2), 9; Tas Security Act (n 9) ss 8(2), 11.
111. Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) s 1317AAD(3)(a)–(c).
112. AJ Brown (n 8) 2.
113. See, eg, Deuze and Witschge (n 18) 176.
114. Specifically: Tas RTI Act (n 9) s 5(1); Tas Security Act (n 9) s 3.
115. Or, in the case of NSW and Queensland whistleblower laws (the first variant of the leading approach) ‘in the occupation of writing or editing material intended for publication …’: NSW PIDA (n 9) s 4; Qld PIDA (n 9) s 20(4). See also organisation-based definition in the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) s 1317AAD(3).
116. NSW Security Act (n 9) s 4; Broadcasting Services Act 1992 (Cth) s 202(5).
117. See, eg, New South Wales, Parliamentary Debates, Legislative Assembly, 27 May 2011, 1319 (Greg Smith, Attorney-General, Minister for Justice).
118. See, eg, Deuze (n 20) 16, 17; Zelizer (n 25) 349.
119. Evidence Act 1995 (Cth) s 126J; Evidence Act 2011 (ACT) s 126J.
120. Schroeder (n 12).
121. See, eg, Public Interest Journalism Initiative, Submission to the Queensland Department of Justice and Attorney-General, Shielding Confidential Sources: Balancing the Public’s Right to Know and the Court’s Need to Know, (16 July 2021) 3.
122. NSW PIDA (n 9) s 4; Qld PIDA (n 9) s 20(4).
123. Broadcasting Services Act 1992 (Cth) s 202(5); NSW PIDA (n 9) s 4; Qld PIDA (n 9) s 20(4); Tas Security Act (n 9) s 3; Tas RTI Act (n 9) s 5(1).
124. NT Evidence Act (n 5) s 127A(6).
125. Broadcasting Services Act 1992 (Cth) s 202(5); NSW Security Act (n 9) s 4; Tas Security Act (n 9) s 3; Tas RTI Act (n 9) s 5(1).
126. Eg, NSW Security Act (n 9) ss 6(2), 9(2)(d); Tas Security Act (n 9) ss 8(2), 11(4)(b)(ii); Tas RTI Act (n 9) s 16(2)(ba).
127. See, eg, Evidence to Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security, Parliament of Australia, Canberra, 19 September 2019, 15 (Michael Shoebridge); Evidence to Senate Environment and Communications References Committee, Parliament of Australia, Canberra, 18 October 2019, 12 (Paul Murphy and James Chessel); Evidence to Senate Environment and Communications References Committee, Parliament of Australia, Canberra, 18 October 2019, 12 (Senator Samantha McMahon and Connie Carnabuci).
128. Evidence to Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security, Parliament of Australia, Canberra, 13 August 2019, 4 (Tim Wilson MP and Hugh Marks).
129. Alliance for Journalists’ Freedom, ‘AJF Calls for Voluntary Certification Program for Journalists — Alliance for Journalists’ Freedom’ (11 November 2020) <https://www.journalistsfreedom.com/media-release-voluntary-certification-program/>.
130. Broadcasting Services Act 1992 (Cth) s 38C(15), 43, 87, 97J. See also ‘Industry Codes of Practice’, Australian Communications and Media Authority.
131. Evidence Act 2008 (Vic) s 126J(2)(d) (emphasis added).
132. Kumova (n 11) [33].
133. See, eg, Singer, ‘The Socially Responsible Existentialist’ (n 28) 5–7; Deuze and Witschge (n 18) 167; Knight, Gerlis and Cherian (n 15) 123.
134. See, eg, ‘MEAA Journalist Code of Ethics’, Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance <https://www.meaa.org/meaa-media/code-of-ethics/>; ‘SPJ Code of Ethics - Society of Professional Journalists’, Society of Professional Journalists <https://www.spj.org/ethicscode.asp>; ‘Australian Journalists’ Association Code of Ethics 1994’, Accountable Journalism <https://accountablejournalism.org/ethics-codes/Australia-AJA>; ‘Standards and Codes for TV and Radio Broadcasters’, Australian Communications and Media Authority (1623713441) <https://www.acma.gov.au/standards-and-codes-tv-and-radio-broadcasters>. For discussion, see Ray Finkelstein, Report of the Independent Inquiry into the Media and Media Regulation (Final Report, 28 February 2012) 160–6 (‘Finkelstein Report’).
135. Finkelstein Report (n 134) 198.
136. Ibid 197.
137. See generally, Rebecca Ananian-Welsh, Sarah Kendall and Richard Murray, ‘Risk and Uncertainty in Public Interest Journalism: The impact of Espionage Law on Press Freedom’ (2021) 44(3) Melbourne University Law Review 764, 766, 769.
138. Constitution of the Federative Republic of Brazil art 220.
139. Union of Radio and Television Companies of São Paulo (2009) STF 511.961<https://redir.stf.jus.br/paginadorpub/paginador.jsp?docTP=AC&docID=605643>;See also English-language commentary on this subject in Raphael de Cunto, Beatriz Landi Laterza Figueiredo and Luiza Rehder, ‘The Media and Entertainment Law Review: Brazil’, The Law Reviews (Web page, 8 December 2021) <https://thelawreviews.co.uk/title/the-media-and-entertainment-law-review/brazil>. See also Carlo José Napolitano, ‘Liberdade De Imprensa no Supremo Tribunal Federal: Análise Comparativa Com a Suprema Corte Dos Estados Unidos’ [Press freedom in the Brazilian Supreme Court: a comparative analysis with the U.S. Supreme Court] (2015) 38(1) Intercom: Revista Brasileira de Ciências da Comunicação 19.
140. For discussion of the relationship between the implied freedom and press freedom, see Rebecca Ananian-Welsh and Joseph Orange, ‘The Confidentiality of Journalists’ Sources in Police Investigations: Privacy, Privilege and the Freedom of Political Communication’ (2020) 94(10) Australian Law Journal 777, 786–7; Australian Broadcasting Corporation v Kane (No 2) [2020] FCA 133, [264], [320]–[329].
141. That is, engaged in newspapers, magazines, radio broadcasts or television broadcasts. This also includes electronic services operated on a commercial basis or by a body that provides a national broadcasting service.
142. NT Evidence Act (n 5) s 127A(6).
143. Broadcasting Services Act 1992 (Cth) s 202(5); NSW Security Act (n 9) s 4.
144. Evidence Act 1995 (NSW) s 126J; Evidence Act 1906 (WA) s 20G; Evidence Act 1929 (SA) s 72; SA PIDA (n 10) s 4; Evidence Act 2011 (ACT) s 126J; Evidence Act 1995 (Cth) s 126J; NT Evidence Act (n 5) s 127A(6).
145. Evidence Act 1995 (NSW) s 126J; Evidence Act 1906 (WA) s 20G; Evidence Act 1929 (SA) s 72; SA PIDA (n 10) s 4; Evidence Act 1995 (Cth) s 126J(1).
146. See discussion above concerning the activity-based approaches.
147. See Kumova (n 11) [44]–[46].
148. NSW Security Act (n 9) s 4; Broadcasting Services Act 1992 (Cth) s 202(5); Tas RTI Act (n 9) s 5(1); Tas Security Act (n 9) s 3.
149. Evidence Act 2008 (Vic) s 126J(1).
150. NT Evidence Act (n 5) s 127A(6).
151. Evidence Act 1977 (Qld) s 14R.
152. Victoria Police Act 2013 (Vic) s 235(1).
153. Deuze and Witschge (n 18) 177; Johnston and Wallace (n 17) 851.
154. The same definition is adopted to support the leading definition: Evidence Act 1995 (NSW) s 126J; Evidence Act 1906 (WA) s 20G; Evidence Act 1929 (SA) s 72; SA PIDA (n 9) s 4. I note a broader, and arguably preferable, definition of news medium is presented by NT Evidence Act (n 5) s 127A(6): ‘news medium means any medium for the dissemination of information to the public or a section of the public’.
155. Confirmed in Kumova (n 11) [31].
156. New South Wales Law Reform Commission, Open Justice — Court and Tribunal Information: Access, Disclosure and Publication (Draft Proposals, June 2021) 20.
157. Kumova (n 11) [32] (emphasis removed).
158. See, eg, criticisms raised in: HRLC Submission (n 41) 7.
159. See, eg, Evidence Act 1995 (Cth) s 126K; Evidence Act 1995 (NSW) s 126K; Evidence Act 2008 (Vic) s 126K; Evidence Act 1906 (WA) s 20I; Evidence Act 1929 (SA) s 72B; Evidence Act 2011 (ACT) s 126K; NT Evidence Act (n 5) s 127A; Evidence Act 2001 (Tas) s 126B; Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) s 1317AAD(1).
160. See, eg, Criminal Code (n 48) ss 119.2(3)(f), 122.5(6). Cf the limited exemption in the Court Security Acts where the presence of a list is more arguable.
161. See, eg, Evidence Act 1977 (Qld) s 14R; Tas RTI Act (n 9) s 5(1), with the definition introduced by the Right to Information Amendment (Applications for Review) Act 2019 (Tas); Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) s 1317AAD(3), introduced by the Treasury Laws Amendment (Enhancing Whistleblower Protections) Act 2019 (Cth); NT Evidence Act (n 5) s 127A(6), introduced by the Evidence (National Uniform Legislation) Amendment (Journalist Privilege) Act 2018 (NT).
162. PJCIS Report (n 1) 36, 82.
163. AJ Brown (n 8) 2. See also PJCIS Report (n 1) 116, 118; Senate Report (n 1) 64.
164. Deuze and Witschge (n 18) 177.
165. Kumova (n 11) [16].
166. See, eg, Victoria Police Act 2013 (Vic) s 235(1); Serious Sex Offenders (Detention and Supervision) Act 2009 (Vic) s 182; Summary Offences Act 1953 (SA) s 36.
167. For a full list of statutory mentions of journalist, see above (n 48).
168. See, eg, Criminal Code (n 48) s 122.5(6) which provides a news-reporting defence to federal secrecy offences without containing the terms ‘journalist’ or ‘journalism’.
169. Eg, Public Interest Disclosure Act 2013 (Cth); PJCIS Report (n 1) 100; Senate Report (n 1) 41.