jtownend's posterous

For many trained journalists, McNaes - perhaps the best known guide to media law in the UK - is their bible.

If they're lucky and work for a well-resourced organisation they might be able to consult an in-house lawyer when occasion rises.

But for independent online publishers and bloggers who also play an increasingly big part on the UK news scene there's unlikely to be the money for legal advice.

What's more, the latest edition of McNaes, as excellent and indispensable as it is, is not always enough.

Not only is a New Media Testament for our bible necessary, we need regular footnotes, as new precedents are set. While McNaes has some online updates and good resource suggestions at this link, it's not all-encompassing.

Two recent cases, for example, could change the court's treatment of hyperlinks and comment moderation. Online publishers should be aware of these decisions.

So what happens when there's not an in-house lawyer on hand to answer questions? Do bloggers without journalistic accreditation find it difficult to access certain information?

What UK media laws should an online publisher consider - and do they need reform? How could online publishers be better equipped to deal with UK media law?

It was issues like these that I want to address in my MA project (the findings of which will influence my forthcoming MPhil / PhD research at City University London's new Centre for Law, Justice and Journalism).

As part of my research I have set up this short survey: http://bit.ly/medialawsurvey

If you're UK-based and write for a small, or your own, site, please take five minutes to answer some questions.

If, as I hope you do, you think it a worthwhile exercise, please pass the link to friends and colleagues.

Crowd-sourcing is also a permitted technique for my research, so I have turned to the excellent Help Me Investigate site, which has served me well in the past.

I have set up this investigation: What are the legal risks for online publishers / bloggers / journalists in the UK?

If you're a member of HMI and would like to get involved, please sign up! If you're not, you can request an invite at this link.

I'll attribute and credit all contributions appropriately, which will feed into my online MA project and dissertation - and it would be great to see it discussed on other people's blogs too.