The Conflict And Balance Between Public Figures To Privacy And Freedom Of The Press

The conflict between public figures to privacy and freedom of the press has beenone of the hot topics of academic and judicial discussion. Privacy and freedom of thepress are all citizens enjoy the fundamental rights, when the two conflict, what shouldbe focused on the protection of which side in the end how to achieve a balancebetween the two rights, our privacy and freedom of the press legislation bite problemto be solved. Our laws for the protection of privacy has been throw into confusion theprivacy including the right of reputation, often occurs in teal life people to be againstbut did not infringe the reputation and lack of protection and relief situations. As forpublic figures, although our current judicial precedents, a public figure to say, andthat the moral rights of public figures such as fame and in the event of reasonableinterest of the public interest and public should be limited, but our laws and theconcept of a public figure, more did not how to deal with the relevant provisions ofthe rights of public figures. Blank of the law, making the judges how it should be achoice for how to protect and limit the privacy of public figures, and how to protectand regulate the system of freedom of the press, and when the two conflict, often onlyby virtue of the relevant judicial interpretations of discretion, resulting in similarcases often appear in a different verdict, the law lost credibility and prestige. This isnot conducive to the healthy development of the news media is not conducive to thenews media, public opinion and protect citizens’right to know.Privacy and freedom of the press reason for conflict, mainly due to both protectthe interests of different. If the boundaries of the law does not privacy protection andfreedom of the press to make a clear definition of conflict is inevitable between thetwo. The free press is fundamental freedoms enjoyed by a constitutional referendum,the privacy of public figures involved in the reasonable interest of the public interestand the public, as well as public figures agree with the public’privacy, interviews andreports of the news media can be. But privacy is also the enjoyment of basic moralrights, despite the limitations of the public interest and news value, but has nothing todo with this privacy should be protected by law. In the process of interviews andreports, the news media should pay attention to safeguard the basic dignity of publicfigures, to be lawful and reasonable way to conduct the interviews and reports shallnot be intrusive to privacy and family life of public figures. The Tort Liability Law of the People’s Republic of China introduced inDecember2009, the second article specifies that a civil rights and interests of privacyfor citizens to enjoy. This is a big step forward in China’s legislative. However, thelaw does not distinguish between public figures and the privacy of natural persons,this is not enough to solve the conflict between public figures to privacy and freedomof the press. Increased year by year freedom of the press cases of violations of theprivacy of public figures, public figures can not be in accordance with the relevantprovisions of the law to defend their rights, these facts should cause great concern oflawmakers. Intensify the development of the relevant privacy law and press law isimminent.