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Private Legal Practitioner, Ace Anan Ankomah, has suggested that shareholders and owners of media houses be held accountable and sued for defamation caused by their organizations and staff.
According to him, incidents of defamation of character by media outlets through false publications have become too many and attributed this trend to the lack of willpower among victims to pursue legal actions for redress and exoneration.
Ace Anan Ankomah made these remarks while discussing the dangers of misinformation and disinformation, particularly the harm they cause on Thursday, November 28, 2024, during the Media Executives Breakfast organised by the Africa Media Bureau for media professionals.
Themed “Ethical Considerations and Risks in Programming for Social Media: Responsible Election Reporting” the workshop discussed the most effective strategies for covering elections in today’s digital era, focusing on understanding the impact of technology and online platforms.
Addressing a defamation concern raised by a participant that the issue persists because “We don’t sue enough,” the Legal Practitioner emphasized that the level at which victims handle such matters is insufficient and further called for a review of the defamation law.
“I’m going to respond to the issue that we don’t sue enough – we talk a lot but often we don’t carry through to the matter to the end. If someone does something wrong, we think the arrest is the punishment so therefore that is the end of the story. Was he put before the court, was he trailed, was he sentenced, did he face jail term?
“We don’t follow through, he could have been released the next day, and that is the end of the story. Yes, I agree we don’t sue enough. This is the problem because the begging is too much, they know how to go to your pastors and chiefs, and they come and beg and beg and beg,” he stressed.
He quizzed, “And I wonder, does the person that caused the damage lose his job? No!! If the person gets a query, who knows, who cares?”
Ace Anan Ankomah expressed that the disheartening part of such developments is that those who mostly defame people are often worthless despite being loudmouths.
“You go to court and realize that the loudmouth person is some impecunious man of straw who has nothing. You get the judgment and wonder what to do with it; the guy has nothing he can really insult. That is his only gift.”
To that end, he proposes that “I think that the law of defamation, particularly news organizations, should allow us to go after stakeholders and directors of media organizations.”
“You see, ultimately, who are the ones making the money from us been insulted – who are the persons in charge of administering and directing the affairs of the companies?
So, can they just sit and say they are immune, and they will make dividends every year while you [people] are insulted? The stakeholders are the direct beneficiaries of the media organizations. So, maybe, one of these days, we should test it,” says Ace Anan Ankomah.
