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What you cannot publish: law, defamation and other people's photos
A practical boundary for writers: false factual claims, personal data, children, health, accusations, third-party photos and quotations, with local notes.
There is no single universal list of what cannot be published in media. Rules on reputation, privacy, image rights, personal data and quotation differ by country. This article therefore gives working principles rather than legal advice.
Facts and opinions are not the same thing
“This project seems pointless to me” is an opinion. “The project manager stole the project budget” is a factual allegation that can be checked and can seriously damage reputation. Adding “in my opinion” does not turn a concrete accusation into a protected opinion.
Before publishing a disputed factual claim, ask: what evidence do I have; did I give the person a reasonable chance to respond; does my wording accurately reflect the document; am I drawing a stronger conclusion than the source supports?
Personal data and private life
The fact that information is available to a writer does not mean it should be published. Home address, phone number, medical diagnosis, family conflict and information about children require a separate assessment of public interest and local law.
Take particular care with minors. A name, photograph, school and details of an event can identify a child in combination even when each individual element seems harmless.
Medical information and criminal allegations
Do not diagnose people from videos, posts or behaviour. Health information is sensitive. Even when a person has publicly disclosed a diagnosis, quote only what is necessary for the subject.
In criminal cases, distinguish between a suspect, a person charged and a person convicted. Before a final court decision, wording matters.
Other people's photographs
An image appearing in a search result does not become free to use. Safer sources are your own photograph, an image used with direct permission from the rights holder, or a photo library/archive with a licence that covers the intended use. Keep information about the licence and the creator.
Separate from copyright, a person may have rights relating to the use of their likeness.
When uploading a cover image, the author declares that they have rights to it. That declaration does not make an unauthorised photograph lawful; it means the author takes responsibility for the legal basis of use.
Quotations and borrowing
A quotation must be justified by the purpose of the article and should not replace the original work. You cannot copy a table or a large passage merely because you name the author. Permitted extent and exceptions differ by country and by type of work.
A practical rule is to take only the fragment needed for analysis, name the source in words and paraphrase the rest yourself.
What happens on the platform
Automatic checks are not legal review. They can block advertising, links, duplication and technical violations, but they cannot guarantee that an accusation is supported or that a photograph is licensed. A publication can remove an already published column if unlawful content is found and notify the author.
Risk checklist
- a disputed factual statement is clearly separated from opinion;
- a serious allegation has a verifiable basis;
- the person had a chance to respond when appropriate and possible;
- personal data are genuinely necessary for the public-interest purpose;
- children are not identifiable without a strong reason and lawful basis;
- rights to every photograph are understood and documented;
- quotations do not replace somebody else's work;
- local rules have been checked before publication.
Writing about a dispute while facts are still contested
Separate what has been established, what one party alleges and what remains unknown. These are three different information states. “The company did not pay the employee's salary” reads as an established fact. If all you have is the former employee's statement, it is more accurate to write: “A former employee says they were not paid for the specified period; the company did not respond to a request for comment.”
If the other side responds, report its position with the same precision. Neutrality does not mean arithmetic in which each side receives the same number of lines regardless of evidence. The writer's task is to show honestly what documents support each part of the story and where the dispute remains.
Serious accusations require particularly strict checking.
Anonymisation must remove the possibility of identification
Replacing a name with “A.” is not enough if the article still includes a unique job title, rare profession, exact date, small town and description of a single event. People in the same community may identify the person immediately. If identity is not needed for the meaning, remove the set of identifiers, not only the name.
But do not change facts until the story becomes a different story. If age or location matters to the conclusion, replacing it with an invented detail creates another problem. It is better to generalise: “a minor participant”, “a small municipality”, “a healthcare worker”, and explain that details were reduced to protect privacy.
When the material concerns a child, patient, victim of violence or another vulnerable person, ask not only “may I name them?” but “does naming them serve the public meaning of this article?” Legality and editorial necessity are different questions.
Where to publish
Legal risk does not disappear because you choose a particular platform. Publishing independently does not remove the author's responsibility, and having an editor is not a guarantee against complaints. For sensitive material, local legal review before publication may be sensible.
What Columnist provides
The author controls the publication and can edit or remove a column through the dashboard, but that does not erase responsibility for what has already been published. The publication may also remove material. External addresses are not used, but sources still need verbal attribution. Rights to the text remain with the author, while rights to photographs must be secured separately.
Before publishing disputed material, check local law and then work through Columnist, address columnist.mib.news.
FAQ
If I write “in my opinion”, can I say anything?
No. A concrete, verifiable allegation does not become an opinion merely because of an introductory phrase. Courts and editorial standards distinguish statements by their substance, not by a label attached to them.
Can I use photos from a search engine?
The fact that an image appears in search results does not grant a right to publish it. You need to know who holds the rights and the licence terms, or obtain permission.
Can I publish private messages? It depends on content and local law: privacy, personal data, copyright and public interest may overlap.
Who is responsible for the text after publication?
The author is responsible for the content of the column. Automatic platform checks do not replace fact-checking or legal assessment.
Reading is half of it. The other half is a column with your name on it, in a real publication.
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