Research Council, which was of considerable assistance in
meeting secretarial and other costs. In particular, it enabled us to
employ a Research Assistant, Sheila Fahy, who conducted some
of the interviews and who also spent many hours in the Royal
Courts of Justice collecting statistics about the libel actions set
down for trial in London. Her enthusiasm and support were
always invigorating, and without her help we would have found it
impossible to complete this research.

The Guild of Editors, Publishers Association, and Periodical
Publishers Association were of great assistance in sending out
questionnaires on our behalf, organizing meetings, or giving us
access to their own surveys. We would like to thank by name
Christopher Jones OBE ( Chief Clerk, Central Office of the Royal
Courts of Justice); David Newell, Santha Rasaiah, and Mary
Russell of the Newspaper Society; Charles Clark and colleagues at
the Publishers Association; and Peter Mason of the Periodical
Publishers Association. More generally, we are grateful to the
large number of newspaper, broadcasting, and other lawyers,
journalists, editors, publishers, and others who assisted us by
returning questionnaires and by sparing the time for interview.
Finally, we would like to thank Sylvia Lough for the transcription
of countless taped interviews and for invaluable administrative
help.

The interviews for this study were for the most part conducted
in 1994 and 1995. Our conclusions therefore cannot take full
account of the impact of the changes to defamation law made by
the Defamation Act 1996. Indeed, we finished the writing of this
book in July 1996 as the Bill secured Royal Assent. Consequently,
we have been able to mention some of its provisions in the first
chapter of the book.

Eric Barendt prepared the drafts of Chapters 1 (with Kenneth
Norrie), 2 (with Sheila Fahy), 4, 5, and 9 (with Laurence
Lustgarten). Laurence Lustgarten and Hugh Stephenson wrote
Chapter 3; in addition the former wrote Chapter 6, and the latter
wrote Chapter 7. Kenneth Norrie wrote Chapter 8 on Scottish
law. But we share responsibility for the final text and for any

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