If a defamatory statement is capable of conveying more than one meaning, is the defence of responsible communication established?

If the defamatory statement is capable of conveying more than one meaning, the jury should take into account the defendant's intended meaning, if reasonable, in determining whether the defence of responsible communication has been established. This follows from the focus of the inquiry on the conduct of the defendant. The weight to be placed on the defendant's intended meaning is a matter of degree: “The more obvious the defamatory meaning, and the more serious the defamation, the less weight will a court attach to other possible meanings when considering the conduct to be expected of a responsible journalist in the circumstances” (Bonnick v. Morris, [2002] UKPC 31, [2003] 1 A.C. 300 (P.C.), at para. 25, per Lord Nicholls). Under the defence of responsible communication, it is no longer necessary that the jury settle on a single meaning as a preliminary matter. Rather, it assesses the responsibility of the communication with a view to the range of meanings the words are reasonably capable of bearing.