Ten Questions to a Media Lawyer: Charles Sims
Charles Sims, formerly a partner at Proskauer Rose LLP, is now Counsel to the Media Freedom and Information Access Clinic at Yale Law School. 1. How’d you get into media law? What was your first job? My interest in first amendment law was set by a summer working for the ACLU in San Francisco, and confirmed…
The Safety and Security of Reporters
By David J. Bodney For journalists, it is more dangerous covering world events now than at any time in recent memory. The Committee to Protect Journalists reports that 1,249 journalists have been killed since 1992, including 21 killed so far in 2017. These are the confirmed, work-related deaths in direct reprisal for the reporter’s efforts,…
Conflating a Journalist’s Criticism with Terrorism
By Richard N. Winfield Prosecutors in Turkey are hard at work putting journalists in jail for publishing articles critical of the regime of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, citing their criticism as evidence of sympathy and support for organizers of the failed coup attempt of July 2016. Dozens of journalists and independent media outlets now find…
Government Official’s Ban of Citizen from Her Facebook Page Violated First Amendment
By Al-Amyn Sumar A decision from the Eastern District of Virginia released last month addresses “important questions about the constitutional limitations applicable to social media accounts maintained by elected officials.” Davison v. Loudon County. The effects of the elected official’s actions on the plaintiff in this particular case were “fairly minor,” but the implications of…
The Road to Destruction of Section 230 May Be Paved with Well-Intended Anti-Trafficking Bill
By Allison Venuti Senate Bill 1693, also known as the Stop Enabling Sex Trafficking Act of 2017 (SESTA), was recently presented to the Senate with noble intent, but may come with severe consequences for free speech and emerging internet platforms. Background SESTA was proposed by Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) with bipartisan support from 26 senators…
News Media Coalition Pushes Back Against Government Monitoring of Journalists’ Drone Flights
By Charles D. Tobin Nearly two dozen news organizations have asked the Federal Aviation Administration to resist recommendations from law enforcement and national security agencies that would enable the government to monitor and identify the operators of all commercial drones flights in the U.S. – including the emerging fleet of news drones. The News Media…
Fair Report Privilege Protects News Article About Public Matrimonial Hearing
A defamation suit by a former law firm associate against the New York Daily News over an article describing his behavior at a matrimonial hearing was dismissed pursuant to New York’s statutory fair report privilege. Zappin v. Daily News, L.P., D/B/A The Daily News, No. 16 Civ. 8762 (S.D.N.Y. Aug. 9, 2017) (Failla, J.). The…
Libel Suit Over New York Times Editorial Survives Motion to Dismiss
A libel suit filed by the Murray Energy Corporation and five of its coal mines against the New York Times survived a motion to dismiss. The Marshall County Coal Co. et al. v. The New York Times Company, No. 5:17-CV-79 (N.D. W. Va. Aug. 10, 2017) (Bailey, J.). At issue is an April 24, 2017…
Bankruptcy Court Rules California Anti-SLAPP Statute Is Not Applicable in Federal Court
Statute Is Substantive, But Conflicts with Federal Rules of Civil Procedure The New York court in charge of Gawker’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy ruled that California’s anti-SLAPP law conflicts with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and cannot be raised in federal court. In re Gawker Media LLC, No. 16-11700 (S.D.N.Y. Bankr. Aug. 21, 2017) (Bernstein,…
Media Coalition Argues That Georgia’s Anti-SLAPP Law Applies in Federal Court Diversity Actions
Carbone v. Cable News Network on Appeal to 11th Circuit A media amicus coalition, including MLRC and 24 other media organizations, filed a brief asking the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit to rule that the Georgia anti-SLAPP statute applies in diversity actions in federal court. The issue is currently the subject of…
Court Resurrects Libel Suit Against NY Times Over Slavery Comment
By David McCraw A libertarian professor who was accurately quoted as saying slavery was “not so bad” should be allowed to proceed with discovery in his libel suit against The New York Times, the Fifth Circuit ruled in August. Block v. Tanenhaus, No. 16-30966 (5th Cir. Aug. 15, 2017). The circuit’s decision reversed a district…
From the Executive Director’s Desk: No Rest for Media Bar in the Trump Era
Busy Summer Moves Into Busy Fall; Terrific London Conference Ahead Although summer is supposed to be a relaxing and not busy time, many lawyers will say that’s a myth. Indeed, this summer has proved to be as busy, if not busier, that the seasons which preceded it. Herewith a brief summary of some of the…
MediaLawLetter August 2017
Download Publication MLRC From the Executive Director’s Desk: No Rest for Media Bar in the Trump EraBusy Summer Moves Into Busy Fall; Terrific London Conference Ahead Ten Questions for a Media Lawyers: Charles Sims LIBEL & PRIVACY 5th Cir.: Court Resurrects Libel Suit Against New York Times Over Slavery CommentBlock v. Tanenhaus 11th Cir.: Media…