Privacy for the Weak, Transparency for the Powerful

U. of Adelaide Law Research Paper No. 2016-19

de Zwart, Melissa, 'Privacy for the Weak, Transparency for the Powerful' in Andrew T. Kenyon (ed), Comparative Defamation and Privacy Law (Cambridge University Press, 1st ed, 2016) 224 - 245

Posted: 18 Aug 2016

See all articles by Melissa de Zwart

Melissa de Zwart

University of Adelaide - School of Law

Date Written: June 28, 2016

Abstract

This chapter is concerned with the notion of personal privacy in the context of a post-Snowden Internet, where the ubiquitous services upon which we all rely have become a potential surveillance device. It analyses the context within which the revelations by Snowden, Manning, Assange and others regarding mass surveillance have occurred and the perceived hostility between the role of whistleblowers and new media platforms, in disclosing such surveillance, and their media partners in reporting it. It attempts to address the question of whether those who reveal state secrets should be entitled to retain secrets of their own, and focusses on the attention to the personal lives of the whistleblowers rather than the message that they are delivering. It concludes that personal privacy is a vital aspect of democratic participation and should be respected and protected against indiscriminate (warrantless) government and corporate surveillance.

Keywords: Snowden, surveillance, whistleblowers

JEL Classification: K40, k42

Suggested Citation

de Zwart, Melissa, Privacy for the Weak, Transparency for the Powerful (June 28, 2016). U. of Adelaide Law Research Paper No. 2016-19, de Zwart, Melissa, 'Privacy for the Weak, Transparency for the Powerful' in Andrew T. Kenyon (ed), Comparative Defamation and Privacy Law (Cambridge University Press, 1st ed, 2016) 224 - 245, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2801904

Melissa De Zwart (Contact Author)

University of Adelaide - School of Law ( email )

Ligertwood Building
Adelaide 5005, South Australia SA 5005
Australia

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