Tech
An Italian court has found three Google execs guilty of violating the privacy of a child with autism who was shown being bullied in a video posted on Google Video. The case has potentially vast implications for the future of the hosting platforms such as Facebook and YouTube who argue that they cannot be held responsible for content created by their users until they are informed that something is illegal. The Italian prosecutors contended that Google was negligent in not removing the video sooner.
In a statement, Google said the outcome of the case was:
“… surprising to say the least, since our colleagues had nothing to do with the video in question: they did not make it; they did not upload it, and they have not seen it… We are deeply troubled by this conviction for another equally important reason… It attacks the very principles of freedom on which the internet is built. Common sense dictates that only the person who films and uploads a video to a hosting platform could take the steps necessary to protect the privacy and obtain the consent of the people they are filming.”
The prosecutors maintained:
“… this was not a trial about freedom of the internet as some have said. Instead, and for the first time in Italy, a serious issue has been raised about the rights of the individual in today’s society.” More in The Guardian HERE and HERE ; Times HERE; Telegraph HERE; and FT HERE.
Media
A Home Office report has recommended that “lads’ mags” such as Zoo and Nuts should be made top shelf titles with age restrictions on their sale because they are thought to be part of a “drip, drip” media landscape sexualising children at an increasingly early age. The report was commissioned last year by the then home secretary, Jacqui Smith, as part of a Home Office strategy tackling violence against women and girls.
The report, published tomorrow is also expected to endorse a call from the Royal College of Psychiatrists for advertisements and magazine spreads to carry a warning kitemark when digitally enhanced models appear. More in The Guardian HERE.
Robert Dee, a young British man described as “the world’s worst tennis pro” has appeared at the High Court to sue the Daily Telegraph for ruining his professional reputation. He has already secured more than 30 apologies and tens of thousands of pounds in damages from media organisations that made similarly disparaging allegations about his sporting prowess. The BBC, Daily Mail, Guardian and Sun were among the news organisations that apologised to Dee, avoiding litigation. More in The Guardian HERE.
Auction
Chanel couture gowns from the 1920s go under the hammer in France today alongside handbags and jewellery. Estimated prices range from as little as €50 for certain accessories to €10,000 for a silk satin gown embroidered with white pearls, thought to have been designed by Coco Chanel herself, around 1923. More in The Guardian HERE.
A pair of football boots worn by Sir Stanley Matthews in the 1953 FA Cup Final have been sold – complete with laces, studs, and a programme from the game signed by players – for £38,400 at auction. More in The Times HERE.
