MediaLawLetter August 2013
REPORTERS PRIVILEGE
Fourth Circuit Reverses Order Allowing Reporter James Risen to Protect Source
Majority Rejects First Amendment and Common Law Privilege
United States v. Sterling (James Risen intervenor)
NY App.: Divided First Department Says Strong Public Policy Favors Protecting Confidential Sources
But Will Not Save Fox News Reporter From Out of State Subpoena
In re Holmes v. Winter
D. Mass.: Court Awards Newspaper Legal Costs Incurred in Filing Motion to Quash Subpoena to Reporter
Subpoena a Transparent Fishing Expedition
Durand v. Massachusetts Dep’t of Health
LIBEL & PRIVACY
9th Cir.: Court Fumbles the Ball in Videogame Likeness Cases
Court Rejects Rogers Test; Videogame Not “Transformative”
In re NCAA Student-Athlete Name & Likeness Licensing Litigation (Keller); Brown v. Electronic Arts, Inc.
7th Cir.: Court Addresses Actual Malice Pleading Standards
Applies Single Publication Rule to Internet
Pippen v. NBCUniversal Media, LLC
NY Sup.: Photographer’s First Amendment Right Prevails Over Neighbors’ Privacy Interest
Photos Entitled to Full First Amendment Protection
Foster v. Svenson
E.D. Mich.: Federal Judge in Michigan Puts Creepy Mattress Case to Bed
Defamation by Implication Claim Rejected
Hazime et al. v. Fox TV Stations Inc.
S.D.N.Y.: Defamation Claims Brought by Canadian Art Expert Dismissed
Court Analyzes Pleading Actual Malice Under Iqbal/Twombley Standard
Biro v. Conde Nast
N.Y. Appeals Court Grants Summary Judgment to Advertiser
Non-Profit’s Ad Not Published with Actual Malice
Humane League of Philadelphia, Inc. v. Berman and Co. et al.
Pa. Super.: Appeals Court Affirms Jury Verdict in Defamation Case
Jury Found Articles Were Accurate
Raintree Homes, Inc. v. Birbeck
Md. Cir.: Report That Prosecutor Gave “False Testimony” Not Actual Malice, Maryland Judge Rules
Public Official Failed to Show Actual Malice
Daggett v. Landmark Community Newspapers of Maryland, et al.
Tex. Dist.: Touchdown! Defendants Beat Back Coach Mike Leach’s Libel and Tortious Interference Claims
Plaintiff Alleged ESPN Conspired to Get Him Fired
Leach v. James, et al.
SUPREME COURT
Supreme Court Should Rule on Content-Based Taxes
Can the Tax Collector Be an Art Critic?
677 New Loudon Corp. v. State of New York Tax Appeals Tribunal
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
2d Cir.: Court Rules in Favor of Appropriation Artist Richard Prince
Transformative Use Based on Broad Suite of Aesthetic Considerations
Cariou v. Prince
N.D. Miss.: Court Dismisses Favorite Son Faulkner’s “Midnight in Paris” Infringement Suit
Estate Sued Over Single Line from Novel
Faulkner Literary Rights, LLC v. Sony Pictures Classics Inc.
Ninth Circuit Affirms Refusal to Enjoin Ad-Skipping Service
Decision Cabined by Deferential Standard of Review
Fox Broadcasting Company v. Dish Network LLC
NEWS & UPDATES
Ohio App.: Ohio Juvenile Judge Held in Contempt
Judge Denied Reporter Access to Proceedings
State ex Rel. The Cincinnati Enquirer v. The Honorable Tracie M. Hunter
INTERNET
California: School District Suspends Social Media Policy in Face of a Constitutional Challenge
Policy Restricted Using Social Media for “Inappropriate” Speech
INTERNATIONAL
Across the Pond: Updates on UK Media Law
Defamation Act, Leveson, Lance Armstrong and More