Page 149 - Law and the Media

Law and the Media
Right to an assessment
A request for an assessment as to whether processing is being carried out in compliance with
the DPA may be made to the Data Protection Commissioner by or on behalf of any person
who is, or believes himself to be, directly affected by any processing of personal data. Upon
such a request being made, the Data Protection Commissioner is obliged to carry out the
assessment.

7.2.6 Exemptions

There are a series of exemptions to the DPA. For media organizations and journalists, the
most important exemption is found in Section 32 of the DPA, which concerns journalism, art
and literature.

The processing of personal data that concern journalism, art or literature is exempt if all of
the following apply:

The processing is undertaken with a view to the publication by any person of any
journalistic, literary or artistic material, and
The data controller reasonably believes, having regard to the importance of
freedom of expression, that publication would be in the public interest, and
The data controller reasonably believes, in all the circumstances, that compliance
with the provision of the DPA with which the data controller does not wish to
comply is incompatible with journalism, art or literature.

An example of when the exemption might apply is the use of details of the previous sexual
history of a convicted sex-offender in a documentary about his crimes.

When considering whether the data controller’s belief that publication would be in the public
interest is reasonable, it is possible to consider whether he complied with any relevant code
of practice for the publication in question, such as the National Union of Journalists’ Code
of Practice, the Press Complaints Commission’s Code of Practice or the Broadcasting
Standards Commission’s Fairness, Privacy and Standards Codes.

In circumstances where the exemption under Section 32 of the DPA applies, a media
organization or journalist is not required to comply with:

The data protection principles, except the seventh principle concerning appropriate
technical and organizational measures to be taken against unauthorized or unlawful
processing of personal data
The right of access
The right to prevent processing causing damage or distress
The right to prevent automated decision taking
The right to rectification, blocking, erasure and destruction, and
The conditions in Schedules 2 and 3 of the DPA.
112