Newspaper entitled to undeceive the public

Campbell v Mirror Group Newspapers plc (CA TLR 16 October)

In overturning the award of damages to the model Naomi Campbell for breach of confidentiality and compensation under s13 of the Data Protection Act 1998, the Court of Appeal held that a newspaper was justified, in the public interest, in publishing details of Miss Campbell’s attendance at meetings of Narcotics Anonymous, and a photograph of her in the street leaving such a meeting, to lend credibility to an article designed to demonstrate that the model had deceived the public when she said that she did not take drugs. Where a public figure chooses to make untrue pronouncements about his or her private life, the press would normally be entitled to put the record straight. Given that it was legitimate for the defendant to publish the fact that the claimant was a drug addict and that she was receiving treatment, it was not particularly significant to add the fact that the treatment consisted of attendance at meetings of Narcotics Anonymous. The defendant was entitled, after publication, to rely on the public interest exemption in s32 of the Act in answer to the claim, the conditions of exemption were satisfied in the circumstances and the Act was not infringed.