Journalismm
100 Questions
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Date: May 05, 12:01
From: Christina Valencia <grudziegurl8@yahoo.com>
My questions are how can celebrities get back at anything the
reporters report about them (such as law suits etc.)? Also, what
are their boundaries? How much does the law allow them to cover?
Answer: Celebrities of course can sue for "defamation
and slander", see
jury instructions for law on the matter.
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My two cents
Date: May 05, 11:21
From: Marianna Flores
1. I always wondered why the media gets away with so many things
and doesn't get in trouble, or do they get in trouble and it is
just something we don't know about?
Example- Last night on ABC there was a special on the "behind
the scenes of American Idol" and an ex-contestant claims
that he and Paula Abdul had an affair.
I'm sure this is violating Paula's privacy, so can't ABC get in
trouble for this?
answer: Paula is a public figure or Celebrity. See N.Y.
Times vs. Sullivan, where the respect to criticism of the
official conduct of public officials it is necessary, the Court
said, for a defamation plaintiff to establish that a false statement
has been published with either knowledge of its falsity, or with
reckless disregard as to its truth or falsity. This is the
so-called "actual malice" standard.
2. When the media goes out and investigates a certain issue
or certain celebrity, what are some of the things they are not
allowed to do or say? For instance, what's legal and not when
trying to get gossip on (for example) Britney Spears?
Answer: there is probably a duty to check our your sources,
a "reasonable person standard" so that you "believe
your stories to be true". You cannot deliberately lie, or
misrepresent facts i.e. have actual malice towards the celebrity.
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Interpreting Controversy
Date: May 05, 11:23
From: Abraham <chess_dude21@yahoo.com>
1 What are your thoughts on the controversy surrounding companies
such as ClearPlay and CleanFlix that "sanitize" copyrighted
movies for family viewing? Is what they're doing censorship?
answer: Family Entertainment and Copyright Act. The legislation,
which is expected to be signed into law by President Bush, primarily
benefits one company, Utah-based ClearPlay, which sells DVD players
outfitted with a program that allows consumers to skip over material
in any movie that they’d rather not see or hear.
<http://filmbrain.typepad.com/filmbrain/2005/04/bush_protects_c.html)
"However, the scariest bit of the Family Entertainment Copyright
Act (FECA) is the Family Movie Act of 2005. This clears the way
for companies that distribute self-edited versions of films (or
technology that performs the same function) by making them exempt
from trademark infringement. [See update note below.] What's truly
evil about this is that many of the companies that do this sort
of thing (ClearPlay, CleanFilms, CleanFlicks, FamilyFlix, etc.)
are in the midst of lawsuits with several directors, including
Martin Scorsese, Steven Soderbergh, Sydney Pollack, and Curtis
Hanson (to name a few) -- lawsuits that are now basically rendered
useless by the passing of this act. It's interesting to note that
the same technology, if used to remove commercials from recorded
programs, is NOT covered by this act. (Six pages of the bill
go into detail why editing films is good, but skipping commercials
is the root of all evil.)"
http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/index.php?sty=40372
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Date: May 05, 12:01
From: Lynelle Aniciete <Lilscoolmail@yahoo>
Two questions:
1. Up to what point do we as a public have before we cross the
boundries that might trigger a law suit?
2. According to the case of the University Alabama coach, Mike Price, the media can somehow always pry into the personal lives of ordinary people who only hope and assume that what happens behind closed doors is their business. How much leverage does the media have before they get punished for their nosiness?
2 Was Ward Churchill pushing the evelope of the First Amendment with his comments? Did the media accurately portray his position?
http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/11551071.htm
During his 1-hour and 45-minute speech, Churchill did not back
down from his 3½-year-old, description of World Trade Center
victims as ''little Eichmanns'' that has recently turned him into
a subject of conservative torment while propelling him into the
latest liberal champion du jour.
In the piece, the Native American rights activist argues that
the 3,000 people killed in the World Trade Center attacks worked
for “the mighty engine of profit,” calling them “little
Eichmanns,” a reference to the man who implemented Adolf
Hitler’s plan to exterminate Europe’s Jews.(http://www.littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/?entry=14482)
If you call a person a "communist, or a prostitute"
that could be defamation per se, but is the rule the same for
people who are dead? why or why not?
"Slander per se": There are four kinds of utterances
which, even though they are slander rather than libel, require
no showing of special harm [420]:
a. Crime: Statements imputing morally culpable criminal behavior to P.
b. Loathsome disease: Statements alleging that P currently suffers from a venereal or other loathsome and communicable disease.
c. Business, profession, trade or office: An allegation that adversely reflects on P’s fitness to conduct her business, trade, profession or office. (Example: "P cheats his customers.")
d. Sexual misconduct: Statement imputing serious sexual misconduct
to P.(see http://207.233.44.253/wms/jordand/emmanuels/torts.htm)
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Date: May 05, 11:26
From: Sergio Rodriguez <srod192002@hotmail.com>
These are two questions I have regarding Media and Law.
Can Primetime Live be sued for running a story that ruins a
person’s character? (Ex. A former “American Idol”
Corey Clark vs. Paula Abdul)
see above N.Y. Times vs. Sullivan case above.
Why is the media allowed in side a courtroom?
answer: courts generally allow the public into hearings,
and if public can attend, then also the media can, within certain
limitations.
"Oregon's Bill of Rights provides both for fair trials and
for freedom of the press. These rights are basic and unqualified.
They are not ends in themselves but are necessary guarantors of
freedom for the individual and the public's rights to be informed.
The necessity of preserving both the right to fair trial and the
freedom to disseminate the news is of concern to responsible members
of the legal and journalistic professions and is of equal concern
to the public. At times these two rights appear to be in conflict
with each other." (http://www.orenews.com/legal/BarAssnGuide.html)
"In a major victory for public access to court rooms, the
California Supreme Court has held that the public and press have
a Constitutional and statutory right of access to civil proceedings.
Directly addressing the issue for the first time, California's
high court held in NBC Subsidiary (KNBC-TV), Inc. v. Superior
Court - 86 Cal. Rptr. 2d 778, 980 P.2d 337 (Cal. 1999).1 that
a trial judge in the well-publicized dispute between Clint Eastwood
and Sondra Locke wrongly excluded the press and public from proceedings
conducted outside of the jury's presence. In addition to its finding
that the Constitutional right of access applied to civil proceedings,
the Court meticulously analyzed and rejected the many arguments
typically raised against media access to legal proceedings.
The unanimous, sweeping opinion makes clear that civil proceedings are presumptively open, and closure is permitted only in "the rarest of circumstances" where a trial court expressly finds, after adequate notice and an open hearing, that there exists an overriding interest supporting closure, there is a substantial probability that the interest will be prejudiced absent closure, the proposed closure is narrowly tailored to serve the overriding interest, and there is no less restrictive means of achieving the overriding interest.2" (http://www.dwt.com/related_links/adv_bulletins/CMITFall1999RightAccess.htm)
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Date: May 05, 11:37
From: Nancy
1.Why is it that the gov't cannot control hackers online if
they have so much power? Or do they not want to?
U.S. Federal law does prosecute Hackers - click
here. The Justice Department, using the recently approved
anti-terrorism law, can now prosecute foreign hackers when they
attack computers in their own or other countries outside the United
States. (http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/47712_hacker22.shtml)
2.Also, Are there any laws or regulations regarding the endless
obscene material on the net? If so, What are they? And do
you believe there should be any, more?
answer: A federal judge has tossed out the state's law
barring distribution of sexually explicit pictures to minors over
the Internet, saying it violates the First Amendment and Congress'
authority over interstate commerce.
U.S. District Judge Patrick Duffy said in his ruling Monday that Internet filters are an equally effective and less restrictive alternative to keep such material from minors.
The challenge was brought by booksellers and publishers, some of whom operate Web sites with material on topics like obstetrics, sexual health, visual art and poetry. They argued the law would prevent adults from access to constitutionally protected material.
The Internet statute was passed four years ago as an amendment
to the state's existing law prohibiting the distribution of harmful
materials to minors. No cases have been prosecuted under the new
provision. (http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-4999344,00.html)
The parts are laid out by Akdeniz (1996) as follows:
1. the average person using contemporary moral standards finds
the work as a whole appeals to the prurient interest
2. the work depicts or describes in an offensive sexual conduct
specifically defined by state law.
3. the work lacks, on a whole, serious literary artistic political
or scientific value.
This test of obscenity has not gone unchallenged, especially
since in two parts of the test, the use community standards and
state law, vary widely over jurisdictions across the US. System
operators of Internet providers must be especially aware of the
more than 50 jurisdictions in the US and their laws, especially
since the case of US v. Thomas where a couple operating a BBS
in California were convicted in a Tennessee court using the community
standards of Memphis, which are stricter than those in California
(Akdeniz 1996). (http://www.slais.ubc.ca/courses/libr500/fall1999/www_presentations/c_hogg/unitedstates2.htm)
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Would you agree that lawyers should have a website? will that
not take away from their traditional purpose... and what will
be next, online trials?
yes many lawyers have their own webpages, and also their
own law blogs. Parts of litigation will be placed in electronic
form, but trials will remain in person.
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Re: Journalism 100 class
Date: May 05, 11:59
From: Milan Casarubbia <diablo_487@yahoo.com>
1. Some unemployed freelance wirters put their work on the
web such as on blogs how can they protect their work and ideas?
answer: blogs are protected by copyright laws. "Copyright
protection subsists from the time the work is created in fixed
form. The copyright in the work of authorship immediately becomes
the property of the author who created the work. Only the author
or those deriving their rights through the author can rightfully
claim copyright." (http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ1.html#wccc)
2. If I had an idea for a product to put on the market what would be the process of copyrighting and proteccting this idea? - see U.S. Copyright site above.
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School governmernt control over newspaper.
Date: May 05, 11:43
From: sandra sedano <imerandsandy@aol.com>
If the school government funds the school newspaper can they
censor it's contents?
answer: see Lopez
Case - right to protect safety, welfare of minor students.
In January 1988, the United States Supreme Court handed down its
decision in the case Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier. The
decision upheld the right of public high school administrators
at Hazelwood East High School in suburban St. Louis, Missouri,
to censor stories concerning teen pregnancy and the effects of
divorce on children from a school-sponsored student newspaper.
The "Hazelwood" decision was in dramatic contrast to the previous 15 years' decisions of courts across the country that had given student journalists extensive First Amendment protections. As a result, many students and advisers are concerned about the status of their rights.
Although the Supreme Court was only dealing with a student
newspaper in this case, it seems clear that all student news and
information media could be affected. Student newspapers, yearbooks,
and literary magazines, as well as radio and TV programs, can
use this information as a guide. Because the First Amendment only
protects against the actions of government officials, and the
"Hazelwood" case only dealt with First Amendment rights,
private school students are unaffected by the "Hazelwood"
decision. They must rely on school policies or state law to protect
their free expression rights.
(http://teacher.scholastic.com/researchtools/articlearchives/civics/usgovt/judic/hazstupr.htm)
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questions that intrest me...
Date: May 05, 11:51
From: heidi <eternitycrazy@yahoo.com>
1) As a student how much power does freedom of press have among
school news papers??
see above information from Hazelwood case.
2) Whats your personal insight on the pickering vs the board
of education law is it fair for the teachers??
“Pickering v. Board of Education” Supreme Court of the
United States, 1968
In a significant number of cases a school has sought to punish
a teacher for expressive acts off campus. This case presents the
Supreme Court’s basic framework for deciding these cases.
here is an interesting interview with Pickering - click
here.
youthful teacher wrote a letter to the editor complaining about
his school board's allocation of funds with respect to athletics
vis-à-vis academics. The letter got him fired. "By
choosing to teach in the public schools, plaintiff undertook the
obligation to refrain from conduct which in the absence of such
position he would have an undoubted right to engage in."
The majority continued: "A teacher who displays disrespect
toward the Board of Education, incites misunderstanding and distrust
of its policies, and makes unsupported accusations against the
officials is not promoting the best interests of his school, and
the Board of Education does not abuse its discretion in dismissing
him."
The Supreme Court overruled the Illinois Supreme Court and held:
the Board of Education had violated Pickering's First Amendment
rights. The high court noted that oftentimes employee-employer
disputes present a conflict between the employee's free-speech
interests and the employer's efficiency interests.
Justice Thurgood Marshall wrote: "The problem in any case is to arrive at a balance between the interests of the teacher, as a citizen, in commenting upon matters of public concern and the interest of the State, as an employer, in promoting the efficiency of the public services it performs through its employees."
The high court first noted that Pickering's letter referred
to important matters of public concern in the community. The court
pointed out that Pickering should not lose the rights he possesses
as a citizen simply because he works as a public school teacher.
The court also minimized the board's argument that the letter
disrupted the efficient operation of the schools.
Read
the Pickering case here.
p.s. i think your web site is awsome it has lots of helpful
tips and information for a students that want to learn about law
and media and other informative resources..
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media diversity
Date: May 05, 11:56
From: sandra sedano <imerandsandy@aol.com>
Can the school demand the people invoved in the school media
be diverse even if there is very little diversity in the shool
itself?
answer: The LACCD is an equal opportunity employer: The
goal of Los Angeles Community College District is to ensure equal
opportunity to all qualified employees and applicants for employment
without regard to race, color, national origin, ancestry, religion,
creed, sex, age, disability, marital status, or sexual orientation.
Positive action will be taken to ensure that this non-discrimination
policy is followed in all personnel practices, including recruitment,
hiring, placement, upgrading, transfer, demotion, and pay practices.
(http://www.laccd.edu/diversity/overview.htm)
Here is the policy on College
Newspapers and Grievance Procedure for LACCD Colleges, i.e.
Mission College
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the Music Industry and the Paparazzi
Date: May 05, 11:57
From: Ismael Morales <Insomniac2412@yahoo.com>
1. Do you think the regulations proposed by Nancy Reagan(committee
against censorship)violated the First Ammendment?
answer: not sure which committee that would be. "Consistently,
the courts, including the Supreme Court, have ruled book banning
is unconstitutional. One of the first victories came in 1913 in
the case of United States v. Mitchell Kennerley. In this case,
Judge Learned Hand wrote, "I question whether in the end
men will regard that as obscene which is honestly relevant to
the adequate expression of innocent ideas, and whether they will
not believe that truth and beauty are too precious to society
at large." (http://www.dailycampus.com/media/paper340/news/2004/02/06/Commentary/Censorship.Violates.First.Amendment-600074.shtml)
2. Are there laws concerning the paparazzi?
"In both
California and England, where the unauthorised celebrity shot
has any number of homes to choose from, there are strict laws
governing the intrusion of photographers on private property.
"Once a celebrity has their feet on private property, they're
safe," Smith said."
The anti-paparazzi law in California: "The statute,
which is codified as California Civil Code section 1708.8, went
into effect on January 1, 1999. Ten days later, a Paris judge
concluded that Princess Diana's driver was primarily responsible
for the accident that killed her, and that the paparazzi would
not be charged with causing her death. A federal "anti-paparazzi"
law was introduced in 1998, but did not pass. The federal bill,
which was sponsored by California Senator Diane Feinstein, among
others, sought to make it a crime to "persistently follow
or chase" a person in a manner that causes a person to have
a reasonable fear of bodily injury in order to film or record
him or her for commercial purposes. Like the California law, the
federal bill also provided for civil actions. It is unclear whether
the bill will be reintroduced into the new Congress." (http://www.dwt.com/related_links/adv_bulletins/CMITWint1999RedefPriv.htm)
These questions are protected under international copyright
laws.
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Date: May 05, 11:59
From: Evan Jenkins <mysteriousauger@yahoo.com>
My questions are about the "little guy," the independent artist, and how media law effects them.
1. As an aspiring author, what legal resource would I have
for getting my book into public repositories such as a library?
answer: "There are approximately 120,000 libraries of various
types in the United States. These libraries employ nearly 140,000
librarians. Libraries and librarians play a significant and influential
role in our society. More significantly, authors need to know
that libraries spend billions each year purchasing books. Why
shouldn't your book be one of these?" (http://www.writersweekly.com/this_weeks_article/001810_07142004.html)
read how to market your book to libraries - http://www.writersweekly.com/books/1220.html
2. For a non-label artist who has no legal representation,
is it dangerous to introduce their work to the web? How can such
a vulnerable work be better protected if they can't afford a pack
of lawyers?
answer: copyright laws protect works that are fixed in
form.
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Date: May 05, 12:00
From: Ignaciodelgado <nachochess@yahoo.com>
Why does the court room allowe press and media to be persent
if the plaintiff is a celebrity to there on sometime but not all
the time?
answer: see above discussion on the right of the press
to be in courtrooms
If the plaintiff is big time killer the media is there 24/7
who controls the discuss of the "fans" outside of
the coutroom
answer: rules of censorhip of free speech apply, see above
discussion
Censorship and Privacy
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Date: May 05, 12:02
From: Melissa Sanvicente <resorte_rokera@yahoo.com>
if students manage to have a newspaper funded through other
means than the school,if the school never approved the newspaper,
can the school censor the newspaper?
answer: see censorship rules above and discussion on school
newspapers
"The student newspaper plans to run a story about underage
drinking. Fearing the article might be defamatory, the principal
and superintendent briefly halt publication. Did they do the right
thing?
A federal case from Wooster, Ohio, illustrates a basic and unavoidable tension facing school boards and administrators when they deal with student expression. On one hand, schools need to foster and respect students' First Amendment right to free speech; it is an important part of educating children to become active citizens. On the other hand, schools need to maintain an atmosphere that is free of disruption and in which students learn not to violate the rights of others.
The case, Draudt v. Wooster City School District Board of Education, offers a valuable lesson about establishing and applying policies about student publications to resolve that tension in a prudent and constitutional way.
Internet privacy is a big issue. Software Encryption program
is "pretty good privacy" can the government restrict
people from obtaining this software if they are not able to control
who uses it?" (http://www.asbj.com/2003/10/1003schoollaw.html)
sample policies: Policy 5721.01, governing student publications,
recognizes that protection against prior review and censorship
is important to maintain "an unfettered student press"
that is "essential in establishing and maintaining an atmosphere
of open discussion, intellectual exchange, and freedom of expression
on campus."
However, the policy permits prior review and censorship of material that is "obscene as to minors, defamatory, including libel and slander, [and] materially and substantially disruptive of school activities." The policy directs the faculty adviser and students who work on school-sponsored publications to review the content to avoid publishing prohibited or defamatory material. Administrators are prohibited from engaging in prior review as long as the student publications comply with board policies.
should they? that is for you to decide.
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Date: May 10, 15:04
From: Carolina M <jc9lover0@hotmail.com>
In my own opinion,
1. Why do the media have to be everywhere just waiting for
a famous person? There is no law that prohibits media to take
pictures or take information that is not true.
answer: see paparazzi law above and rules on defamation
above.
2. How much does a paparazzi gets paid for a unique photo?
Why do they do this?
answer: not sure about this
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Date: Nov 11, 12:01
From: Terra Adkins <BabyPhat5012@hotmail.com>
1.In the article about the high school student that was suspended
from school after an interview with a middle school principal
about a verbally abusive bus driver(at the SPLC website),what
did he do that was so wrong?i didn't understand why the principal
asked him to leave and to end the interview.Was the question about
the bus driver that serious?
answer: ""It’s clear that Mundy was acting
as a reporter, not a student," said SPLC Executive Director
Mark Goodman. "He wasn’t even in his own school building.
School officials have no authority to punish him for his non-disruptive
behavior after school hours." (http://www.splc.org/newsflash_archives.asp?id=909&year=2004)
" How far can school officials go to protect students and
others from possible harm when disruptive or violent behavior
erupts on school grounds? Can penalties be imposed on students
who threaten the safety of others when such penalties might be
viewed as a violation of their individual rights?"
2.on some websites,people can look up anyone's personal information
and figure out where they live etc.What can we do to stop people
from looking up our personal information on the internet?
answer: privacy rights on the internet: Electronic Privacy
Information Center. EPIC was established in 1994 to focus public
attention on emerging privacy issues relating to the National
Information Infrastructure, such as the Clipper Chip, the Digital
Telephony proposal, medical records privacy and the sale of consumer
data. EPIC conducts litigation, sponsors conferences, produces
reports, publishes the EPIC Alert and leads campaigns on privacy
issues. For more information email: epic-info@epic.org, or contact
EPIC, 1718 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Suite 200, Washington, DC 20009.
Tel: (202) 483-1140. Executive Director: Marc Rotenberg.(http://www.epic.org/privacy/privacy_resources_faq.html)
Freedom of Information Act
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Date: Nov 11, 12:03
From: JESSICA DE JESUS <jessica_dj04@yahoo.com>
How do I find more information on the Freedom of Information
Act? - click
here for FOI. and the Privacy Act? go to Privacy
Rights Clearinghouse.
__________________________________________________________________
From: JESSICA DE JESUS <jessica_dj04@yahoo.com>
How do i find more information on california constitution provisions
protecting journalisms?
answer: A tentative ruling yesterday by Superior Court judge James
Kleinberg is likely to have serious implications for the online
publishing industry. In a preliminary ruling on a case filed by
Apple Computer against three website publishers, the judge said
Apple can force the three website publishers to surrender the
names of their sources who disclosed confidential information
about the company’s upcoming products.
Apple’s attorney George Riley, argued earlier in the trial that journalists, whether or not belonging to traditional media like press and broadcast were never entitled to the leaked information. Company trade secrets are vital to the survival of any company, and the lifeblood of the industry, he had said.
“That leaked information belongs to Apple'' he insisted, “and publishing it in a public forum would jeopardize Apple’s business as competitors would jump at the chance to copy the product ‘Asteroid’ and release it in the market before Apple.” (http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/1875.html)
lawyer and client confidentiality
answer: see this link - (http://www2.gsu.edu/~lawppw/lawand.papers/bjones.html#content6)
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updated: 5/12/05
Prof. J.