Those silly French are at it again

Dethfang · 03-07-2007, 06:39 PM

Macworld: News: France bans citizen journalists from reporting violence

"The French Constitutional Council has approved a law that criminalizes the filming or broadcasting of acts of violence by people other than professional journalists. The law could lead to the imprisonment of eyewitnesses who film acts of police violence, or operators of Web sites publishing the images, one French civil liberties group warned on Tuesday.

The council chose an unfortunate anniversary to publish its decision approving the law, which came exactly 16 years after Los Angeles police officers beating Rodney King were filmed by amateur videographer George Holliday on the night of March 3, 1991. The officers’ acquittal at the end on April 29, 1992 sparked riots in Los Angeles.

If Holliday were to film a similar scene of violence in France today, he could end up in prison as a result of the new law, said Pascal Cohet, a spokesman for French online civil liberties group Odebi. And anyone publishing such images could face up to five years in prison and a fine of €75,000 (US$98,537), potentially a harsher sentence than that for committing the violent act.

Senators and members of the National Assembly had asked the council to rule on the constitutionality of six articles of the Law relating to the prevention of delinquency. The articles dealt with information sharing by social workers, and reduced sentences for minors. The council recommended one minor change, to reconcile conflicting amendments voted in parliament. The law, proposed by Minister of the Interior Nicolas Sarkozy, is intended to clamp down on a wide range of public order offenses. During parliamentary debate of the law, government representatives said the offense of filming or distributing films of acts of violence targets the practice of “happy slapping,” in which a violent attack is filmed by an accomplice, typically with a camera phone, for the amusement of the attacker’s friends.

The broad drafting of the law so as to criminalize the activities of citizen journalists unrelated to the perpetrators of violent acts is no accident, but rather a deliberate decision by the authorities, said Cohet. He is concerned that the law, and others still being debated, will lead to the creation of a parallel judicial system controlling the publication of information on the Internet.

The government has also proposed a certification system for Web sites, blog hosters, mobile-phone operators and Internet service providers, identifying them as government-approved sources of information if they adhere to certain rules. The journalists’ organization Reporters Without Borders, which campaigns for a free press, has warned that such a system could lead to excessive self censorship as organizations worried about losing their certification suppress certain stories. "

Stoerm · 03-07-2007, 07:09 PM

Well I'm not convinced it's bad. It probably is, but I'm not convinced.

The first caveat is that to be "approved", you simply have to register who you actually are, and there is no denial possibility.

The second caveat is that your registration information is strictly used to prosecute civil or criminal penalties should you be proven to knowingly promulgating false information.

The French are leftist fags so far as I know, so my guess is this a stab at making people responsible for what they knowingly host on the internet.

I'm just guessing though, so feel free to correct me if I'm wrong in assumption or viewpoint.

Ashes Emberblade · 03-07-2007, 08:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stoerm

I'm just guessing though, so feel free to correct me if I'm wrong in assumption or viewpoint.

Assuming that censorship is ok doesn't make you wrong. It just makes you a fascist.

Arbuste · 03-07-2007, 08:21 PM

It's a stupid, clumsy and electoralist way to try to criminalize "happy slapping" and similar activities. Highschool kids beating up teachers, other kids, raping girls, filming it with a cellphone and sharing it with the whole school has happened several times in the last few months. The media (and, maybe, French people, but mostly the media and the politics) are very concerned.

Laedrun · 03-07-2007, 11:35 PM

yeah, this crap will probably blow up in their faces. They would be better off just publicly caning the kids in front of their friends/schoolmates, would stop that shit real quick. fucking dumb frenchies ;p

Dabamf · 03-08-2007, 02:09 AM

haha, its like france is engaging in some experiment to see how ridiculous they can be before falling apart...so far they're doing quite well all things considered

Pancreas · 03-08-2007, 05:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dabamf

haha, its like france is engaging in some experiment to see how ridiculous they can be before falling apart...so far they're doing quite well all things considered

"A new competitor has joined the race!"

Furism · 03-08-2007, 06:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dabamf

haha, its like france is engaging in some experiment to see how ridiculous they can be before falling apart...so far they're doing quite well all things considered

Yeah, not like the country is two thousand years old or anything. I'm sure a stupid law will make it fall apart when a few dozen of wars didn't (note: this is an opening for WWII jokes/arguments/flamefest).

xregg · 03-08-2007, 06:40 AM

.....,.

Rune · 03-08-2007, 07:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Furism

Yeah, not like the country is two thousand years old

What the fuck are you talking about.

HiroYagyu · 03-08-2007, 07:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Furism

Yeah, not like the country is two thousand years old or anything. I'm sure a stupid law will make it fall apart when a few dozen of wars didn't (note: this is an opening for WWII jokes/arguments/flamefest).

You mean the nation that entered the 20th century having had 3 revolutions, 2 succesful coups, 2 coup attempts, and finaly stabilized (lol) w/ 93 governments over a 65 year period (1848-1913) under the 3rd republic? Thats just 19th century France. Very stable indeed.

Tuco · 03-08-2007, 07:42 AM

viva la france

Eomer · 03-08-2007, 07:44 AM

Quote:

"A new competitor has joined the race!"

lol, no shit.

Furism · 03-08-2007, 10:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rune

What the fuck are you talking about.

I should have said the country's history. I just failed at trolling (pretty much like everybody in this thread).

Szlia · 03-08-2007, 11:12 AM

The french have a flair to address real problems in a bad way. They don't have a monopoly on that though.

03-07-2007, 06:39 PM	#1 (permalink)
Dethfang a.k.a. Dr. Campbell Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Indianapolis Posts: 1,159 +39 Internets	Those silly French are at it again Macworld: News: France bans citizen journalists from reporting violence "The French Constitutional Council has approved a law that criminalizes the filming or broadcasting of acts of violence by people other than professional journalists. The law could lead to the imprisonment of eyewitnesses who film acts of police violence, or operators of Web sites publishing the images, one French civil liberties group warned on Tuesday. The council chose an unfortunate anniversary to publish its decision approving the law, which came exactly 16 years after Los Angeles police officers beating Rodney King were filmed by amateur videographer George Holliday on the night of March 3, 1991. The officers’ acquittal at the end on April 29, 1992 sparked riots in Los Angeles. If Holliday were to film a similar scene of violence in France today, he could end up in prison as a result of the new law, said Pascal Cohet, a spokesman for French online civil liberties group Odebi. And anyone publishing such images could face up to five years in prison and a fine of €75,000 (US$98,537), potentially a harsher sentence than that for committing the violent act. Senators and members of the National Assembly had asked the council to rule on the constitutionality of six articles of the Law relating to the prevention of delinquency. The articles dealt with information sharing by social workers, and reduced sentences for minors. The council recommended one minor change, to reconcile conflicting amendments voted in parliament. The law, proposed by Minister of the Interior Nicolas Sarkozy, is intended to clamp down on a wide range of public order offenses. During parliamentary debate of the law, government representatives said the offense of filming or distributing films of acts of violence targets the practice of “happy slapping,” in which a violent attack is filmed by an accomplice, typically with a camera phone, for the amusement of the attacker’s friends. The broad drafting of the law so as to criminalize the activities of citizen journalists unrelated to the perpetrators of violent acts is no accident, but rather a deliberate decision by the authorities, said Cohet. He is concerned that the law, and others still being debated, will lead to the creation of a parallel judicial system controlling the publication of information on the Internet. The government has also proposed a certification system for Web sites, blog hosters, mobile-phone operators and Internet service providers, identifying them as government-approved sources of information if they adhere to certain rules. The journalists’ organization Reporters Without Borders, which campaigns for a free press, has warned that such a system could lead to excessive self censorship as organizations worried about losing their certification suppress certain stories. "

03-08-2007, 06:40 AM	#9 (permalink)
xregg Tattooman Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Bergen County, New Jersey Posts: 515 -2 Internets	.....,. Attached Images

03-08-2007, 07:42 AM	#12 (permalink)
Tuco Forum Janitor Join Date: May 2002 Location: Detroit Posts: 8,251 +14 Internets	viva la france __________________

03-08-2007, 11:12 AM	#15 (permalink)
Szlia Conquest Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Switzerland Posts: 4,673 +10 Internets	The french have a flair to address real problems in a bad way. They don't have a monopoly on that though. __________________ -retrosabotage-

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03-07-2007, 07:09 PM	#2 (permalink)
Stoerm Registered User Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: La Costa Posts: 420	Well I'm not convinced it's bad. It probably is, but I'm not convinced. The first caveat is that to be "approved", you simply have to register who you actually are, and there is no denial possibility. The second caveat is that your registration information is strictly used to prosecute civil or criminal penalties should you be proven to knowingly promulgating false information. The French are leftist fags so far as I know, so my guess is this a stab at making people responsible for what they knowingly host on the internet. I'm just guessing though, so feel free to correct me if I'm wrong in assumption or viewpoint.

03-07-2007, 08:21 PM	#4 (permalink)
Arbuste This calls for the league of Evil! Join Date: May 2002 Posts: 753 -1 Internets	It's a stupid, clumsy and electoralist way to try to criminalize "happy slapping" and similar activities. Highschool kids beating up teachers, other kids, raping girls, filming it with a cellphone and sharing it with the whole school has happened several times in the last few months. The media (and, maybe, French people, but mostly the media and the politics) are very concerned.

03-07-2007, 11:35 PM	#5 (permalink)
Laedrun Registered User Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Austin Posts: 378	yeah, this crap will probably blow up in their faces. They would be better off just publicly caning the kids in front of their friends/schoolmates, would stop that shit real quick. fucking dumb frenchies ;p

03-08-2007, 02:09 AM	#6 (permalink)
Dabamf Registered User Join Date: Apr 2004 Posts: 1,793 +4 Internets	haha, its like france is engaging in some experiment to see how ridiculous they can be before falling apart...so far they're doing quite well all things considered