Royal prank call: Sydney radio station wins appeal against media watchdog

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/mar/14/royal-prank-call-radio-station-wins-appeal

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The Sydney radio station behind an infamous royal prank call has won an appeal against a finding by Australia’s media watchdog that it committed an offence by broadcasting the call.

2DayFM launched action in the federal court last year in an attempt to prevent the Australian Communications and Media Authority (Acma) from finding the station committed an offence or was in breach of its licence.

The court action related to 2DayFM’s December 2012 prank call, in which two hosts talked to a nurse at a UK hospital about the then-pregnant Duchess of Cambridge.

After the call by 2DayFM’s Mel Greig and Michael Christian gained international media attention when Jacintha Saldanha, the nurse who put the call through, killed herself.

Acma completed a preliminary report into the incident in June 2013 and found 2DayFM, in broadcasting the recording of the private conversation, breached the New South Wales Surveillances Devices Act.

The radio station submitted in the federal court last year that Acma was not authorised to make a finding that it had committed an offence.

The station argued it was up to the courts to decide if a licensee had committed a criminal offence, and that Acma’s report could prejudice any future court decision.

Justice Richard Edmonds last November ruled in Acma’s favour but his finding was set aside on appeal on Friday.

The full bench of the federal court allowed 2DayFM’s appeal because Edmonds erred in his construction of parts of broadcasting law.

Acma’s determination that 2DayFM breached its licence condition was also set aside.

The court ordered the media watchdog to pay the radio station’s costs.

In a statement, Acma said it was “reviewing the judgment in detail before determining what further steps it may take”.