• Advertise
  • About us
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Contact us
Sunday, May 18, 2025
Australian Times News
  • News
    • Weather
    • Sport
    • Technology
    • Business & Finance
      • Currency Zone
    • Lotto Results
      • The Lott
  • Lifestyle
    • Entertainment
    • Horoscopes
    • Health & Wellness
    • Recipes
  • Travel
  • Expat Life
  • Move to Australia
No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • Weather
    • Sport
    • Technology
    • Business & Finance
      • Currency Zone
    • Lotto Results
      • The Lott
  • Lifestyle
    • Entertainment
    • Horoscopes
    • Health & Wellness
    • Recipes
  • Travel
  • Expat Life
  • Move to Australia
No Result
View All Result
Australian Times News
No Result
View All Result
Home News

Whistleblowers could be in more trouble than those they expose

Study warns that flawed laws mean those who expose organisational corruption in the media may be the ones to face criminal charges.

Mike Simpson by Mike Simpson
02-05-2021 07:00
in News
Image by Sammy-Williams from Pixabay

Image by Sammy-Williams from Pixabay

Australian employees and journalists who expose organisational corruption are in danger of criminal charges under severe and complex national security laws, according to University of Queensland academics.

UQ Law School’s Dr Rebecca Ananian-Welsh and journalism academic Professor Peter Greste said the new laws would have made criminals of many whistleblowers who took their stories to the media in the past.

“Aside from Covid-19, the key stories from recent times have been about misconduct and abuse of power – by governments, banks, the Australian Defence Force, even parliamentary staffers,” Ananian-Welsh said.

Exposing misconduct depends on whistleblowers

“All of those stories depended on whistleblowers; on people who’ve seen things go wrong inside government and businesses and then went to the press as a whistle of last resort,” she said.

“Whistleblowers are absolutely crucial in addressing misconduct and maintaining accountability and integrity, but they need protection from reprisal. This includes the ability to remain anonymous.”

The pair has called for change while launching their research on whistleblowing legislation as it affects journalism. The latest research, published on Friday, is the third paper in their ‘Press Freedom Policy Papers’ series.

Their study found the extensive laws created confusion for journalists and whistleblowers about whether or not they were entitled to the all-important protections provided by whistleblower laws.

AlsoRead...

The Predictive Infrastructure: How BOF’s Neuro Finance System Reengineers Market Forecasting

The Predictive Infrastructure: How BOF’s Neuro Finance System Reengineers Market Forecasting

5 May 2025
McGrocer opens direct access to British household brands for shoppers across Australia.

UK Grocery delivery platform McGrocer expands services to Australian Market

2 May 2025

Public interest law should be urgently amended

Ananian-Welsh’s ‘Whistleblowing to the Media’ policy paper recommends The Public Interest Disclosure Act 2013 be urgently amended to better protect press freedom and those who blow the whistle on misconduct in government.

“The law should recognise that whistleblowing to journalists is a legitimate form of protected disclosure,” she said.

“Sometimes democracy requires public disclosure of government misconduct because solving the problem internally may not be good enough.

“The other urgent reforms are around whistleblower protections, in particular in the intelligence sector, which has been demonstrated in the controversial case of Witness K and Bernard Collaery.”

The laws have become tighter in recent years

Greste said whistleblowers and journalists were always vulnerable under the law, but the laws themselves had become tighter in recent years.

“There’s a general trend now for journalists to err on the side of caution when it comes to whistleblowers – it’s too risky and potentially too expensive even though there is clear public interest in the story,” he said.

“One of the key pillars of our democratic system has been a free, independent and sometimes rabid press.

“If, in trying to make us safe and protect our national security, we end up undermining that very pillar that has helped make us so safe in the first place, then national security isn’t served.”

Tags: journalismLawsmediaPublic interestSecrecywhistleblowers
DMCA.com Protection Status

SUBSCRIBE to our NEWSLETTER

[mc4wp_form id=”2384248″]

Don't Miss

Biela.dev is quietly becoming the Infrastructure Layer for the Next Internet

by Pauline Torongo
15 May 2025
Biela.dev is quietly becoming the Infrastructure Layer for the Next Internet
Technology

Biela.dev is not merely a consumer app; it is infrastructure. It could be a layer that powers the next generation...

Read more

The Battle for the Premier League’s Fifth Champions League Spot: Who Will Prevail?

by Fazila Olla-Logday
8 May 2025
Premier-Leagues-Fifth-Champions-League-Janosch-Diggelmann-Unsplash
at

As the Premier League season nears its climax, the race for the coveted Champions League places is tighter and more...

Read more

The Predictive Infrastructure: How BOF’s Neuro Finance System Reengineers Market Forecasting

by Pauline Torongo
5 May 2025
The Predictive Infrastructure: How BOF’s Neuro Finance System Reengineers Market Forecasting
Business & Finance

As global markets become more complex and volatile, BOF Investments has developed Neuro Finance, a predictive system that combines machine...

Read more

UK Grocery delivery platform McGrocer expands services to Australian Market

by Pauline Torongo
2 May 2025
McGrocer opens direct access to British household brands for shoppers across Australia.
Business & Finance

McGrocer, a British online grocery platform, has expanded its international reach by offering direct delivery of UK-sourced goods to Australian...

Read more

Business Gas: 3 Easy Ways to Keep Costs Down

by Fazila Olla-Logday
23 April 2025
Image Source: Unsplash
at

For many businesses, gas is one of those overheads that rarely gets much attention—until the bills start creeping up.

Read more

Top-Rated Compensation Lawyers in Brisbane: Expert Legal Help for Your Claim

by Fazila Olla-Logday
23 April 2025
Business & Finance

"🏅 Explore top-rated compensation lawyers in Brisbane! Offering expert legal help for your claim. Your victory is our priority! ⚖️💼👨‍⚖️"

Read more

The Q: Exciting New Venue will be Transformational for Queensland

by Pauline Torongo
22 April 2025
The Q: Exciting New Venue will be Transformational for Queensland
Sport

Queensland greyhound racing will embark on a new era this month when the first meeting is staged at an exciting...

Read more
Load More

Copyright © Blue Sky Publications Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
australiantimes.co.uk is a division of Blue Sky Publications Ltd. Reproduction without permission prohibited. DMCA.com Protection Status

  • About us
  • Write for Us
  • Advertise
  • Contact us
  • T&Cs, Privacy and GDPR
No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • Weather
    • Sport
    • Technology
    • Business & Finance
      • Currency Zone
    • Lotto Results
      • The Lott
  • Lifestyle
    • Entertainment
    • Horoscopes
    • Health & Wellness
    • Recipes
  • Travel
  • Expat Life
  • Move to Australia

Copyright © Blue Sky Publications Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
australiantimes.co.uk is a division of Blue Sky Publications Ltd. Reproduction without permission prohibited. DMCA.com Protection Status