Abstract
This article explores the often fraught intersections between social media, fair trial principles and community engagement with high-profile crimes. Specifically, a detailed analysis is undertaken of the Facebook response to the arrest of Adrian Ernest Bayley for the murder of Ms Gillian (Jill) Meagher in Victoria, Australia in 2012. As one of the first Australian crimes to receive a significant social media response, this research provides empirical insights into the dynamic and evolving relationship between social media, the community and criminal trials. By drawing on a critical discourse analysis of over 3,000 comments on the R.I.P Jill Meagher Facebook page, this article identifies and critiques a ‘Discourse of Challenge’ in which digital communication enabled the reinterpretation of legal principles. Further, this article provides empirical insights into the meaning-making processes of Facebook discourses and focuses on how fair trial principles are contested on Facebook in novel and, at times, contradictory, ways.
 
Highlights
Digital technologies such as social media,1 and social network sites in particular,2 have arguably become an integral part of our social, cultural and political lives
It should be noted that the analysis presented in this research focuses on the posts on the R.I.P Jill Meagher Facebook page, which was created following Bayley’s arrest
The analysis undertaken in this article sheds light on the complex meaning-making processes of fair trial principles on Facebook
Summary
Digital technologies such as social media, and social network sites in particular, have arguably become an integral part of our social, cultural and political lives. The defining features of social network sites, including their interactivity and user-generated content, offer dynamic opportunities for the community to engage with a range of public issues, including criminal justice matters.. As the Chief Justice of the New South Wales Supreme Court, Thomas Bathurst AC observed, ‘[w]ith social media, content is not merely consumed by users, it is created, organised and distributed by them’.5. This research extends the author’s previous research by applying the same methodology, woven together with legal doctrinal analysis, to identify and critique a third discourse identified on the R.I.P Jill Meagher Facebook page: the Discourse of Challenge In this discourse, those posting comments on the Facebook page challenged each other, challenged the administrators of the page, challenged the criminal justice system and, in their reinterpretations of legal principles, challenged fair trial principles. It should be noted that while this article examines an Australian case study and considers Australian legal principles, the findings are relevant to an international audience given Facebook’s significant presence around the world
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