Ten Questions to a Media Lawyer: Ashley Messenger
Ashley Messenger is Senior Associate General Counsel at NPR in Washington D.C. If you’d like to be profiled in this series, write us: medialaw@medialaw.org. 1. How’d you get into media law? What was your first job? I had a bumpy start. In law school, I was a research assistant to Ben Stein, and I continued…
Canada’s New Shield Law for Confidential Sources
By Brian MacLeod Rogers, Lisa Taylor and Ryder Gilliland Canada has a new federal law that offers significantly enhanced protections to reporters’ confidential sources and recognizes the societal value in protecting the journalist-source relationship. The Journalistic Source Protection Act (S.C. 2017, c. 22) became law on Wednesday, Oct. 18, after being approved unanimously by both…
High Court of England & Wales: TV Formats Protected by Copyright Even if Elements Are Spontaneous or Changeable
Media companies that create TV game or quiz shows can win copyright protection for the format of those programmes in certain circumstances, the High Court in London has ruled. Banner Universal Motion Pictures Limited v. Endemol Shine Group Limited, et al. (Oct. 26, 2017). The format of such shows is capable of being classed as…
A Legislative Battle in Long War to Access Body Camera Footage
California News Publishers Association Helps Pen Bodycam Law By Nikki Moore It’s probably safe to say that California has among the worst laws in the country for accessing police records. It’s due to a strong law enforcement lobby that, in a politically divided, overwhelmingly progressive state unluckily garners bipartisan support. The California News Publishers Association…
White House Announces Possible Precursor to Stricter Local Regulation for Drone Journalism
By Charles D. Tobin The White House has announced a new Department of Transportation pilot program for state, local and tribal governments “to test the further integration of” drones into the national airspace. The Presidential Memorandum, issued on October 25, could lead to more flexibility for state, local and tribal governments to interfere with drone…
California Appeals Court Affirms Dismissal of Actress’s Publicity and Contract Claims
Creative Decisions Protected Under California’s Anti-SLAPP Law By David Aronoff and Rom Bar-Nissim The California Court of Appeal issued a decision this month that clarified the anti-SLAPP statute and its application to filmmaking. Paz de la Huerta v. Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. et al., B271844 (Oct. 18, 2017). As this article shall explain, the decision…
Former NYTs Columnist’s Libel in Fiction Claim Survives Motion to Dismiss
People Who Know Plaintiff Could Reasonably Think Movie Character Was “Of and Concerning” Him A New York trial court ruled this month that a slander claim against the producers of the movie “Learning to Drive” can go forward. Cohen v. Broad Green Pictures LLC, 2017 NY Slip Op 32230 (N.Y. Sup. Oct. 19, 2017). The…
D.C. Federal Court Dismisses Russian Oligarch’s Libel Suit Against Associated Press
No Actual Malice; Statements Not Actionable The D.C. federal district court this month dismissed a Russian oligarch’s libel suit against The Associated Press over an article discussing his connections to Paul Manafort, President Trump’s former campaign manager now under indictment for conspiracy to launder money, being an unregistered agent for a foreign government, and other…
Massachusetts Federal Court Dismisses ‘Inventor of Email’s’ Defamation Suit vs. Techdirt
Articles Are Protected Opinion; Plaintiff Failed to Plausibly Allege Actual Malice A Massachusetts federal district court last month dismissed a high-profile defamation suit filed by entrepreneur Shiva Ayyadurai against Techdirt over articles disputing his claim to be the inventor of email. Ayyadurai v. Floor64, Inc. d/b/a Techdirt. (Sept. 6, 2017) (Saylor, J.). At issue were…
Court Affirms Dismissal of Defamation Suit Arising from Wrongful Arrest
By Elizabeth Seidlin-Bernstein The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit upheld the dismissal of a libel suit against multiple media outlets based on their reporting about the arrest of a woman who, it later became clear, had been wrongly arrested in a major drug and prostitution ring sting. Lee v. TMZ Productions Inc.,…
Federal Court Rejects Timber Company’s RICO and Defamation Claims Against Environmental Advocates
By Lance Koonce and Lisa Zycherman In a case brought by Resolute Forest Products, Inc., a timber conglomerate, against Greenpeace, Stand, and others, saying the nonprofits fraudulently profited from donations based on false information about Resolute, including claims for violation of federal RICO laws as well as state law claims including defamation, racketeering, conspiracy, and…
Q&A: MLRC Offers an Affordable Way to Train Journalists
From the Executive Director’s Desk Editor’s note: This month’s Executive Director’s column is the transcript of an interview of George Freeman by James Warren, chief media writer for the Poynter Institute, as published in his blog/column. It deals with the state of the MLRC, the changes and recent challenges in media law, the goals of…
MediaLawLetter October 2017
Download Publication MLRC From the Executive Director’s Desk: MLRC Offers an Affordable Way to Train Journalists 10 Questions for a Media Lawyer: Ashley Messenger, NPR LIBEL & PRIVACY N.D. Cal.: Federal Court Rejects Timber Company’s RICO and Defamation Claims Against Environmental AdvocatesResolute Forest Products v. Greenpeace et al. 3d Cir.: Court Affirms Dismissal of Defamation…