Between 2016 and 2018, 130 lawsuits were filed against my newsroom in Poland, Gazeta Wyborcza. That’s an average of more than one suit per month.
Were we doing such poor work? Quite the contrary: we were doing rigorous reporting on shady businesses, state capture, and political corruption, and legal action was being used to stifle it.
Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) are designed to silence and intimidate journalists by burdening them with legal costs. These lawsuits, often baseless, aim to exhaust newsrooms both financially and operationally, ultimately leading to self-censorship. In this challenging landscape, it is crucial for newsrooms to adopt robust strategies to counter SLAPPs effectively.
I spent my time at the Reuters Institute speaking to journalists and legal experts in Poland, Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, and Bosnia & Herzegovina, researching how SLAPPs have been used there. I wanted to understand how they affect journalists’ work and how we can mitigate against the risks of receiving one. I came away inspired by the resilience of my colleagues, and with a six-step plan for newsrooms facing litigation.
Step 1: Make your stories bulletproof
This goes without saying, but everyone in the newsroom is responsible for working together to ensure all reporting is watertight. Check your sources, consult the lawyers before you publish, and double-check even minuscule facts or procedural issues so that you do not create loopholes.
Behind every claimant is an excellent team of lawyers who not only know how to navigate the maze of procedures but are determined to show inaccuracies or undermine the credibility of the journalist. Sloppy editorial procedure works to their advantage.
“Collect evidence and documents and store them securely,” said Marija Vucić, a journalist from the Serbian portal KRIK. “Record and save your conversations, encrypt your communications, and take good care of your sources’ confidentiality.”
It’s important to be meticulous here: documents should not only be collected, but carefully catalogued so that you are never in doubt where to find them again (and not digging through a folder of screenshots, hoping for the best).
Dragana Obradović from the Balkan investigative network BIRN offers this advice: make sure one person is assigned to taking care of evidence collection and storage. “In one of our SLAPP cases we had the documentation spread among different journalists and in the moment of hearing we had problems with the reconstruction of all the events and steps we pursued.”
Step 2: Prepare your team
Tell your staff that lawsuits don’t mean they are poor journalists. Political journalists are fairly accustomed to getting lawsuits, they know what the rules of that play. But in recent years in Poland, SLAPPs targeted journalists covering fields you’d never expect: theater reviews, nature conservancy, education.
“When we started getting SLAPP lawsuits en masse, we realized that they were targeting people who would never have thought that they would be sued,” said Roman Imielski, first deputy editor-in-chief of Gazeta Wyborcza from Poland. “We had to hold meetings immediately to explain what the situation was due to and that the lawsuits were probably not going to end any time soon. The team was also assured that newsroom would provide them with legal protection, regardless of whether the lawsuits were against them personally or if Gazeta Wyborcza was sued – whether they were civil or criminal complaints.”
The same legal protection extended to employees was also given to associates working for smaller editions and regular freelancers.
Step 3: Provide expert support
This is easier said than done in small newsrooms, who don’t have money for legal battles. But look for external help from lawyers working pro bono, or for money from NGOs.
Speaking with journalists from different countries, I know that there is no universal scheme. In Serbia, they have a journalists’ association that provides legal support in the form of pre-publishing consultations and sometimes court representation.
You can also reach out to international organizations like TrustLaw, working for the sake of press freedom. Sometimes civil rights organizations put on workshops: Prague Civil Society Centre trains journalists and activists in anti-SLAPP practices.
Remember that emotional support may be required, too. And not just from the editor: larger newsrooms extend professional counseling services to those enduring exhausting legal battles.
Step 4: Be loud
Inform your audience once you get a SLAPP, report from the court, and make that story go global by seeking publicity from other media organizations and other newsrooms.
This is the very conscious strategy for Serbian investigative portal KRIK. They shout from the rooftops about every legal battle they face, dragging their readers into the fight through colorful reporting. “So many journalists from other media organizations who have also received SLAPPs won’t report about it, because they’re saying, ‘I don't want to be the news; I report the news’,” said KRIK project manager Jelena Vasić. “But that’s the problem. That mindset is keeping you away from the next investigation because you are not telling your readers about the harsh circumstances you are facing, and they cannot offer support."
Vasić said being vocal was the most important action. “Every journalist we send to court is shadowed by another reporter, capturing everything on camera and in writing. We document every detail, from arrivals to courtroom proceedings, because transparency is non-negotiable. Our readers deserve to know what’s happening, and we’re not afraid to be judged in the public eye.”
Domagoj Novokomet agreed: “They don't want witnesses [to injustice], they don't want to be analyzed. And this reporting makes you stronger.”
A court case is more than just a place where you defend what you have already reported, but a chance to follow the story and make it even more meaningful. “At KRIK we use the fact that the judge has much higher authority than us to request information that is usually only available to state institutions or at the demand of state representatives,” said Serbia’s Vasić. “When we investigated offshore companies owned by our minister we said in court: ‘OK, these are the documents we collected about his businesses. Can you, as a judge, ask for ownership certificates so we can see who is wrong and who’s right?’ After this request, the minister withdrew his lawsuit.”
He also said: “When somebody sues us, we officially state that we are now going to further investigate the offending story. We want to make the point: ‘No, you did not silence this; you pissed us off!’ If the lawsuit is for a bulletproof story, we know for sure there is something additional they’re hiding. We always succeed in finding additional dirt about that person."
Dora Krsul, a Croatian journalist from the Telegram portal, agrees with this approach: “After the story about private usage of University of Zagreb properties by the rector, which we were SLAPPed for, we launched a huge investigation into the cover-up of sexual harassment at the University. Let them see they didn’t succeed in shutting your mouth.”
Step 5: Don’t forget about solidarity
As with step 4, pay attention to what is happening in the newsrooms around you. Support your colleagues fighting parallel battles, report from the court, and engage your readers.
Mutual support is a huge investment that will yield returns. “You should be brave, but it also it’s also important to be brave when your colleagues are under pressure. It is very important for them to see that they are not alone. I was fairly disappointed by the silence of my colleagues,” said Croatian Domogoj Novokomet.
Step 6: Show your determination and sue them back
If you are a well-resourced newsroom with moxie and grit, engage in strategic litigation of your own.
According to Jennifer Robinson, a barrister from Doughty Street Chambers, if they said you lied, were careless, or acted against journalistic rules – these are defamatory statements and you can seek compensation. Robinson acknowledged that counter-suing is a very American practice, but said it could be used more broadly in Europe.
Consider organizations like Reporters Shield, a U.S.-based nonprofit, funded by membership fees and donations. They provide members with training and fund the legal protection of investigative reporting. One of their slogans: “Are you ready to SLAPP back?”
To quote her colleague, Caoilfhionn Gallagher KC: “The enemies of media freedom are creative so we need to get creative too.”
By adopting these six steps, I hope newsrooms can better protect themselves against SLAPPs, uphold press freedom, and continue their crucial role in holding power to account.
The fight against SLAPPs is a collective endeavor, requiring solidarity, resilience, and a steadfast commitment to truth and transparency.
This article was originally published as journalist fellow project by Patrycja Maciejewicz, first published by the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. It was republished on IJNet with permission.
For the full project, including detailed case studies, insights into the legal frameworks across different regions, and practical advice for journalists facing SLAPP threats, download the full PDF here.
Photo by Tingey Injury Law Firm on Unsplash.