Last Updated: March 27, 2000
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ASNE on the move
UCCDA initiative advances to legislatures
Newspapers may begin the second millennium in a gradually improving
legal environment that encourages corrections of errors, rather than penalizing
them.
The Uniform Correction or Clarification of Defamation Act will be introduced
in several key state legislatures this year. After five years of little
notice, UCCDA is being recognized as a part of the puzzle of addressing
media credibility. The law would blunt the use of corrections against media
defendants in court. It also limits a plaintiff’s damages to actual economic
loss when timely corrections have been made or when a plaintiff goes directly
to court without seeking a correction. Because media defendants ultimately
win most libel cases, UCCDA’s advocates claim the law will help plaintiffs
get what they need most — a correction of the record — without costly litigation.
UCCDA was created in 1993 by the National Conference of Commissioners
of Uniform State Laws, driven by legal scholars who believed current libel
law was fair to no one. It passed in 1995 in North Dakota, but no other
state has come close to passage since then. Many media executives and attorneys
believed the risks of a legislative campaign were not outweighed by the
value of uniformity or the UCCDA’s broad scope. But with increased Internet
publishing and rising private defamation claims within the workplace, the
value of a new law that would embrace both situations has become more apparent.
ASNE began a project in 1998 to encourage UCCDA’s passage and joined
forces with the Associated Press Managing Editors and others to promote
its value to state media organizations. Now, with ASNE’s endorsement, UCCDA
is in or headed for the legislative hoppers in Florida, Michigan, Minnesota,
New Mexico, Missouri, South Dakota, New York and possibly Washington and
Colorado.
ASNE past president Edward Seaton, editor-in-chief of The Manhattan
(Kan.) Mercury, and chair of the ASNE task force to get UCCDA enacted,
emphasizes the importance of press associations working with private employers
and Internet publishers on passage.
“This is not media law,” he said. “Although it clearly helps newspapers
to do the right thing when corrections are needed, UCCDA benefits anyone
who communicates in writing. In the Internet age, that circle is widening.
Chambers of Commerce and business groups have a lot to gain from the law.”
The Florida Press Association took on leadership in UCCDA last summer
when its board, joined by the Florida Society of Newspaper Editors, endorsed
the act and began to explain it to legislators. It’s meeting little resistance,
FPA officials say.
Michigan Press Association lobbyist Mark Gribben reports good support
from legislative leadership in his state. The MPA board endorsed UCCDA
in October. Already introduced into the state Senate, the group is lining
up bipartisan support in the Michigan House.
UCCDA is being brought forth either by legislators working directly
with NCCUSL or, as ASNE prefers, it is introduced after state press associations
have developed support wthin media groups and other state leaders.
ASNE has resource materials available for organizations interested in
legislative initiatives. Contact Tonda Rush at 703/534-5750 or NewsBizLaw@
aol.com.
