MediaLawLetter March 2020
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From the Executive Director’s Desk: Balancing Unity, Truth and the First Amendment in a Pandemic
George Freeman
10 Questions to a Media Lawyer (Working From Home)
Jay Ward Brown
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
March Gladness! Two March 2020 Court Decisions Recalibrate Music Copyright Law
Kenneth Freundlich
LIBEL & PRIVACY
Minnesota Supreme Court Expands Scope of Fair Report PrivilegeBut Leaves Water Muddy On When Privilege Is Defeated
Leita Walker
Massachusetts High Court Averts “Fair Report” Disaster
Jeffrey Pyle
Second Circuit to King of Bullshit News: “No Redo on Review: You Lose, Fake News.”
Katherine Bolger, Rachel Strom and John Browning
N.Y. App.: Fair Report Privilege Protects WSJ Article About Sale of Looted Artifacts
Court Rejects Plaintiff’s Survey Evidence on Meaning
Jacob Goldstein
Eleventh Circuit Rejects Request to Create Exception to Actual Malice Standard
NASA Official Sued Producers of The Challenger Disaster Docudrama
Daniel Kaufmann and Kim Martin
E.D. Va.: News Commentary Calling State Senator a “Fool” and “Clown” Is Protected Opinion
Brett Spain
N.D. Ill.: Court Throws Out Defamation Suit Over Report About “Creepy” Messages to Girls
Illinois’ Innocent Construction Rule Bars Plaintiff’s Defamation Per Se Claim
Matthew Kelley
Sixth Circuit Court Affirms Dismissal of NCAA Ref’s Claims Over Fan Criticism
Griffin Terry Sumner and Jason Renzelmann
E.D. Va.: Academic’s Libel Suit Alleging Media “Russiagate” Conspiracy Dismissed
Eric Feder
Miss. Cir.: Gray Television Wins Privacy Victory in Mississippi
Jacquelyn Schell
8th Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Auto Dealer’s Lawsuit Over TV News Report
Steven Wells
MLRC Roundtable: Tulsi Gabbard vs. Hillary ClintonIs “Russian Asset” Defamatory?
Do Libel Suits Between Political Figures Hurt or Help Democracy? Will the Complaint Get Past a Motion to Dismiss?
Carol LoCicero, Marc Randazza, and Lincoln Bandlow
PRIOR RESTRAINT
Conn.: Broad Gag Order in High-Profile Murder Case Survives Challenge
William Fish and Alexa Millinger
FOIA / ACCESS
D.D.C. Court Orders DOJ to Submit Unredacted Mueller Report for In Camera Inspection
Matt Topic
INTERNET
Ninth Circuit Succinctly Shuts Down Conservative Censorship Lawsuit
Jeff Hermes