Gossip versus Privacy for the Powerful in France
BBC: Three weeks after the charges of sexual assault in a New York hotel, repercussions from the Strauss-Kahn affair continue to reverberate across France - as a row over new allegations against an unnamed political figure shows.

The opposition Socialist party is still assessing the damage to its presidential prospects following the humiliation of its one-time champion, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, due back in court on Monday.

Commentators agonise over the embarrassment to France's international reputation, or rail against the supposed iniquities of the American justice system.

But by far the biggest impact has been on the debate over the public's right to know.

Outsiders almost unanimously take the view that the Strauss-Kahn affair is proof of a shameful dereliction of duty on the part of French journalism.

Mr Strauss-Kahn's predatory attitude to women was well-known to the Paris media, the argument goes, but went unreported because of a tacit collusion with the political elite.

Here in France, that argument is conceded - but only up to a point.

Most people agree that national newspapers should take a tougher line towards authority - and that the web of interests linking journalists and politicians is harmful to democracy.

But there remains an extremely resilient strand of thought, which resists any move towards an information free-for-all a la Anglo-Saxon [sic].

In the view of the overwhelming majority, the right to privacy is sacrosanct.

And even if the Strauss-Kahn fiasco shows the risks of taking this principle too far, this is preferable to the opposite: a moralising, tabloid culture which (for the French) is the ghastly reality in the UK and the US. » | Hugh Schofield, BBC News, Paris | Sunday, June 05, 2011

Google Italy Ruling 'Threat to Internet Freedom'
THE TELEGRAPH: Three Google executives were convicted on Wednesday of violating privacy laws by allowing disturbing footage of a disabled Italian boy being bullied to be posted on the internet.

The ruling was the first of its kind in history and was condemned by critics as "the biggest threat to internet freedom we have seen".

The trial centred on footage posted on Google Videos, of a teenager suffering from Down's syndrome and who was being bullied by four other boys, at a Turin school.

The footage was posted in September 2006 and became the most viewed where it remained for two months before finally being removed.

Prosecutors in Milan brought the case after being contacted by the charity Viva Down and argued that the boys privacy had been violated and that Google should have removed the footage quicker than it eventually did.

In the footage the boy was seen cowering as he was punched and kicked before one of the youths attacking him made a mocking call to the Viva Down charity.

The three executives found guilty by judge Oscar Magi were David Carl Drummond, former Google Italy and now senior vice president, George De Los Reyes, a retired financial executive and privacy director Peter Fleischer.

The three were found guilty of violating privacy laws and given six month suspended sentences, while they were cleared of defamation. A fourth executive Arvind Desikan, an executive with Google video Europe was cleared. >>> Nick Pisa in Rome | Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Greece Puts Brakes on Street View
BBC: Greece's data protection agency has banned Google from expanding its Street View service in the country, pending "additional information" from the firm.

Street View gives users a 360-degree view of a road via Google Maps.

Authorities want to know how long the images would be kept on Google's database and what measures it will take to make people aware of privacy rights.

A similar street mapping service, run by local ISP Kapou, was also suspended for the same reason.

In a statement, Google said that it had not seen the full details of the The Hellenic Data Protection Authority's request, but had taken steps to protect people's privacy. >>> | Tuesday, May 12, 2009