needs of a newspaper publisher whose product is seen
by large numbers of people.
LACK OF DEFAMATION.— The lack of defama-
tion defense is used when a publisher believes that no
one has been defamed; and therefore, if it can be proved,
there is no basis for a libel suit.
CONSENT.— Consent, as a libel defense, is used
by a publisher when it can be shown that the person
claiming libel previously consented to the statement that
is now being challenged.
.
STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS.— Statute of
limitations, as a complete defense against libel, means
that a libel action was not brought within a maximum
period of time as specified bylaw. The time limit varies
from one year from the date of publication, in some
states, to as many as three years in others. Beyond
whatever deadline is established, no suit maybe filed.
THE PRIVACY ACT
LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Identify the basic
provisions of the Privacy Act.
All Navy journalists must have a working
knowledge of the Privacy Act (PA) of 1974. The PA is
an enclosure to the Department of the Navy Privacy Act
(PA) Program, SECNAVINST 5211.5 series.
PRIMARY FEATURES
Under the PA, government agencies may collect,
store, disclose, account for and amend required personal
information on military and civilian government
employees. Additionally, individuals may request
access to information about themselves. In the Navy,
personal information may be collected and stored in
roughly 200 PA record systems. An example of such a
system is the Navy Civilian Personnel Data System
(NCPDS).
The premise of the PA is simple. Everyone has a
constitutional right to privacy. People do not waive that
right simply because they are in the military or work for
the government. Therefore, when you write a story
about a person, there are a limited number of facts that
may be released without the permission of that person.
RELEASABLE INFORMATION —
MILITARY
In the case of a military person, the following facts
may be released:
l
*
*
l
l
l
l
l
a
l
l
l
Name
Rank
Date of rank
Gross salary
Present and past duty assignments (subject to
limitations addressed in SECNAVINST 5211.5
series)
Future assignments that are officially established
(subject to limitations addressed in SECNAV-
INST 5211.5 series)
Office or duty telephone numbers
Source of commission
Promotion sequence number
Awards and decorations
Attendance at professional and military schools
(major area of study, school, year of education
and degree)
Duty status at any given time
RELEASABLE INFORMATION —
CIVILIAN
When releasing information about government
civilian employees, you may include the following facts
without approval from the individuals concerned:
l Name
Q Grade or position
l Date of grade
l Gross salary
. Present and past assignments
. Future assignments, if officially established
l Office telephone number
The point for you to remember is that, without a
compelling reason that is usually in connection with the
public concern, a person’s privacy should not be
violated. For you to pry into an individual’s home life
in connection with a news story is inexcusable unless
there is some clear public need for the information. On
the other hand a person cannot claim the right of privacy
if an important news event has placed an individual,
willingly or unwillingly, in public view. Even so, this
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