Media Law and Ethics Final Exam

Definition of law: system for the resolution of disputes

Sources of law: statutory, common, executive orders, law of equity, administrative

Statutory law: laws made by legislative bodies such as congress or states

Common law: court rulings precedents for future cases

Law of equity: addresses concerns not directly covered by laws I focus on and justice

Administrative law: regulations made by government agencies

Federal court system: trial court - court of appeals- SCOTUS

First amendment: speech, religion, Press, assembly, petition the government

Fourth amendment: nosearcherseizire - need warrent

Fifth Amendment: Miranda rights & double jeopardy

Sixth Amendment: right to afar and speedy trial

Fourteenth amendment: due process, equal protection, and void for vagueness

Qualified immunity: protects police officers from being directly sued, you have to sue the department

The right to lie: setforth by US v Alvarez

Defamation: an injury to reputation

Elements of Defamation: publication, identification, falsity, fault, damages

Actual malice: knowledge of falsity or reckless disregard of the truth

Defenses to defamation: truth, privilege, opinion fair comment, consent, rely, statute of limitations, mitigation

NYT v Sullivan: plaintiff must show that media did not publish the truth. public officials must snow actual malice

Gertz v Welch: Private individuals do not have to prove actual malice

Damages of defamation: General ( real injuries or emotional distress), special (specific: wages, Financial harm), presumed (not "provable", reputation), nominal(no significant harm), punitive (actual malice outrageous behavior)

Defamation per se: lie about criminal activity, illness, sexual misconduct, etc

Defamation per quod: implied, backhanded statement

Food disparagement laws: defamation about of food

Defamation by implication: journalists leave out info of story And are sued

Defamation by inflection: tone of voice

Four types of invasion of privacy: misappropriation of nil for commercial purposes, intrusion upon a person's solitude, publication of private information about an individual, publishing materials that puts an individual in a false light

Section 2703(f) of the stored communications act: requires a warrant to access texts and emails stored up to 6 months

Section 512 of DMCA: platforms are not liable for copyrighted materials posted by its users

Section 230 of the communications decency act: platforms are not liable for information posted by its users, whether true or false

Third-party doctrine: anything posted that can be seen by a third party does not get any expectation of privacy

Net neutrality: everyone should have equal access to the internet

Blogging: bloggers are both providers and users. As providers, they are protected under section 230

Linking: not copyright infringement if used responsibly

Communications decency Act of 1934: established FCC to regulate broadcast

Spectrum scarcity doctrine: limited availability of broadcast frequencies justifies government regulation and licensing of broadcasters to ensure efficient use of the airwaves and serve the public interest

PICON: public interest convenience o necessity - promotes diversity and variety of content broadcasted

FCC and censorship: FCC can’t censor broadcasters, but can fine them if rules are broken

Regulation of programming: Laws on children's programming, adult/obsene content

Section 312(a)(7) of the Communications act of 1934: broadcasters have to allow equal access or their license can be revoked

Section 315 of the communications act of 1934: political candidates have to have equal opportunities to be broadcasted

Fairness Doctrine: controversial topics have to be presented from both sides (stopped being used in 1987, rescinded in 2014

Political advertising: not pre-approved or fact-checked before broadcasted

17 us code 501: Describes the criminal offesnses associated with copyright violations

Fair use privilege: purpose -character of the use, nature of copyrighted work, the extent and amount of work used, and potential threat to market value

Transformative doctrine: Take copyrighted material and transform it into a new way, probably fair use.

Idea- expression dichotomy: An idea is not copyright-able

Parodies: Generally covered by the transformative doctrine

Copyright Notice: Informs the public of the copyright, identifies the owner, and shows the first year of publication. No longer required under federal law.

Copyright Registration: Not required, but provides legal advantages and protections.

Publication Rights: no reproduction without publisher’s permission

Creative Commons License: Allows creators to retain copyright privileges while allowing others to copy and distribute their work.

Inducement Infringement: Someone encourages infringement, sunge as distributing a tool that can be used to infringe copyright.

Server Test: Courts consider whether the HTML instructions link the image directly from the computer where the image is originally from

Embedding on YouTube and Instagram: If enabled it is allowed, if not, you are not allowed legally

Secondary Infringement: If you engage or meerly view content that is copyright-infringing, you could be liable.

Pell v Procunier (1974): Constitution does not guarantee public access to government records

Limited and Qualified Federal Privilege: Press has a qualified right to access legislative proceedings and court trials

Freedom of Information Act: Gives citizens the right to inspect all records of federal agencies except those containing military, intellegence, or trade secrets.

Freedom of Information Act Exceptions: National Security Matters and law enfocement, as deemed by president

Sunshine Laws: Agency meeting and decision-making processes have to be open to the public.

Journalist: Someone who writes for a news organization, including web-based publications and blogging.

Bloggers: Considered journalists if reporting on news-worthy topics of public interest.

Shield Laws: State laws that protect journalists from having to reveal their sources

Clery Act: Requires universities to report crimes on public sites

Promissory Estoppel: If a person promises to do something, legal liability might ensure someone’s reasonable reliance on this promise

Fraud: A deliberate deception intended to secure an unfair or unlawful gain

Misrepresentation: A false statement or lie that can render the contract void.

Coercion: use of force to get someone to obey

Intrusion: Unreasonable invasion on someone’s privacy

Subpoenas: legal documents that require a person to testify in a certain matter or provide essential documents

Grounds for closing courtrooms: Any party seeking to close a courtroom must demonstrate that the closure serves a compelling interest, such as protecting the integrity of a fair trial or safeguarding sensitive information.

Cameras in Federal Court: Not allowed

Cameras in State Court: Generally allowed, depends on trial judge

Computers in the courtroom: Federal Courts prohibit, Local courts vary

Tweets From Court: Completely prohibited during criminal proceedings

Gag Orders: Legal restrictions prohibiting the press from releasing preliminary information that might prejudice jury selection

Roth Morris Test: First Obscenity test in 1957, later replaced

Miller Test: Current judicial test for obscenity cases

Nitke v Gonzalez: Challenged Communications Decency Act under void for vagueness. Courts upheld CDA, allowing community standards to govern online content

Obscenity: The legal definition of material that is considered offensive or disgusting by accepted standards of morality, often judged against the prevailing community standards.

Indecency: Material that falls short of obscenity but is still deemed inappropriate for certain audiences, generally regulated under the Communications Decency Act and subject to community standards.

Zoning: Communities cannot bar or reduce businesses offering adult entertainment or publications, and must show further substantial evidence.

Revenge and Deep Fake Porn: One person shares intimate pictures and videos as revenge. Outlawed in 41 states, and not allowed on most social media platforms

Profanity: Not outright banned, but regulated by FCC in broadcasts

Espionage Act of 1917: Law that prohibited obtaining information, recordings, pictures, or copying descriptions of any information relating to national security.

Clear and Present Danger Test: Reasoning behind banning language that incites fear or violence- “Don’t yell fire in a movie theater”

Near v Minnesota: Government cannot block publications of information before they are printed/published

Prior Restraint: government action that prohibits speech or other expression before the speech happens

Pentagon Papers: Nixon administration blocked NYT and Washington Post from publishing information about US Activity in Vietnam. SCOTUS ruled prior restraint was unconstitutional

Progressive Case: Instance where prior restraint was allowed, as an article about how to make an atomic bomb was going to be published.

Flipping the Bird: Varies by court, but you can flip the bird at a cop who pulls you over

Tinker v Des Moines: Wristbands protesting Vietnam War. SCOTUS sided with students

Bethel School District v Fraser: Student delivered sexual speech at assembly. SCOTUS sided with with school district

Hazelwood v Kulhmeier: Students planned to publish an article about divorce and teenage pregnancy, using examples from students at the school. Court sided with school.

Morse v Fredrick: “BONG HITS 4 JESUS” SCOTUS sided with school

Mahanoy Area Schools v B.L.: Student on Snapchat posted innapropriate messages about school functions outside of school. SCOTUS ruled in favor of student

Kincaid v Gibson: Censorship of college yearbook. Court found that school violated First Amendment rights of the students

Hosty v Carter: Governors State university published about their adviser’s dismissal. Court sided with the university

Commercial Speech Doctrine- Truthful anonymous advertising about lawful goods and services recieves an intermediate level of protection under First Amendment

False or misleading advertising recieves NO First Amendment Protection

Valentine v Chrestensen: The Supreme Court ruled that purely commercial speech is not protected under the First Amendment.

Bigelow v Virginia: People have the right to advertise abortion services

Virginia State Pharmacy Board v Virginia Citizens: States couldn’t stop pharmacists from advertising prescription drug prices

Central Hudson Gas v Public Serivce Commission: Gave doctors and lawyers the right to advertise, and allows pharmaceutical manufacturers to publicize truthful and legal information about their medicines

Zauderer v Office of Disciplinary Counsel: States may not only block or regulate commercial speech, but they can compel it. States may require advertisers to disclose information such as side effects

Deceptive Advertising: Representations, omissions, or practices likely to mislead or confuse consumers

LOL/OMG/WFT and ad blocker: Comments that may impose an ethical dilemna can block comments or ads.

Political Advertising: Truth not required, Candidates have little incentive for truthfulness.

Political Action Committees (PACs): Political organizations financed and administered by labor unions, corporations, or trade associations. Influence elections and support parties or candidates.

Super PACS: Political organizations financed by special-interet citizen groups. Influence elections and support parties or candidates.

Trust in media: 31% of Americans trust the media

Bots and Trolls: programs used to interact on social media to spread fake news, propaganda, or bogus stories.

Keyword Signaling: Propagandists or politicians dream up a new conspiratorial term so they completely own it and the space around it