WELCOME TO COM. 407

Law of Mass Communications

Textbooks

Major Principles of Media Law, 2002 edition 
The California Supplement, Spring, 2002 edition 

Instructor

Wayne Overbeck, Ph.D., J.D. 
(657) 278-3517 or 278-3786 
Office hours in H332: 1430-1600 MTu 
Website: http://commfaculty.fullerton.edu/woverbeck 

EXAM REMINDERS

1) Show up at the scheduled time. 
***Valid reasons for a makeup: 
Death in the immediate family 
Illness serious enough to require hospitalization 
(NOT work conflicts, car trouble, etc.) 

***Beware makeups: 
S98 Exam #2 average score = 35.7 points 
S98 Exam #2 makeup average = 23.5 points 

2) Erase thoroughly (and rarely). 

Typical course curve: 
A = 129 points (43 avg. per test) 
B = 112 points (37.3 avg. per test) 
C = 93 points (31 avg. per test) 
D = 75 points (25 avg. per test) 
(75 is minimum passing score) 

THE LEGAL SYSTEM

Types of law
Common law (stare decisis) 
Constitutional law 
Statutory law 
Administrative law 
Civil vs. criminal law 

Damages ($$$)
General 
Special 
Punitive 
Others 

THE FIRST AMENDMENT

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech or of the press, or of the right of the people peacably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. 

Establishment clause 
Free exercise clause 
Freedom of speech 
Freedom of the press 
The right to assemble 
The right to petition 

INTERPRETING THE FIRST AMENDMENT

Applies to all governments (Gitlow) 

Is not absolute (Schenck) 
    *Does not protect sedition in wartime 
    *Clear and present danger test 

Protects radicals who pose no imminent threat (Yates) 

Protects hate speech but not violent action (Brandenburg, Mitchell, R.A.V.) 

Protects flag desecration (Johnson, Eichman) 

PRIOR RESTRAINTS

Prior restraints and subsequent punishments (Near) 

National security (New York Times v. U.S.) 

Time, place and manner restrictions (Jehovah's Witness cases) 
    *content neutrality required 

Discriminatory taxation as censorship 

Restrictions on literature distribution and picketing 

Miscellaneous issues 

LIBEL AND SLANDER

Elements

Defamation 

Identification 

Dissemination 

Usually fault 
 

Defenses

Truth 

Fair comment 

Privilege 

LIBEL PROBLEM AREAS
 

Retractions 

Damages

Anti-SLAPP laws (Briggs v. ECHO) 

Summary judgment (Anderson v. Liberty Lobby) 

Long-arm jurisdiction (Calder v. Jones)

Burden of proof (Philadelphia Newspapers v. Hepps)

LIBEL AND THE FIRST AMENDMENT

Actual malice = publishing a falsehood with knowledge of its 
    falsity or reckless disregard for the truth (New York Times v. Sullivan) 

Public figures as well as public officials must prove actual malice (Curtis Publishing and Walker) 

Private persons must prove at least negligence (Gertz) 

Who is a private person? (Firestone, Hutchinson)

STUDENTS AND THE FIRST AMENDMENT

State action (at public institutions) 

Independent student expression (Tinker) 

School sponsored expression (Hazelwood)

Applying Hazelwood to colleges (Kincaid)

State free-expression laws (Ed. Code 48907) 

PRIVACY

Harvard Law Review article: 1890

The constitutional right of privacy: 
    *Criminal cases 
    *Contraception 
    *Abortion 

State privacy law - the big four: 
    *Private facts 
    *Intrusion / newsgathering torts 
    *False light 
    *Misappropriation 

Defenses: 
    *Newsworthiness 
    *Consent 
    *The First Amendment 

Notes: 
    *Growth of "newsgathering tort" lawsuits
    *Special false light issues:
        -actual malice
        -special damages
    *California "Paparazzi" law 

COPYRIGHTS

What can be copyrighted 

What cannot be copyrighted 

Copyright technicalities 
    *Notice 
    *Registration 
    *Duration / the public domain 
    *Remedies for infringement 
    (actual damages, statutory damages, 
    atty fees, impoundment, injunctions) 

Ownership of "works made for hire" 

Copyright owners' prerogatives 
    *Reproduction 
    *Performance 
    *Display 
    *The right to revise 
    (derivative works) 

 COPYRIGHT PROBLEM AREAS

The Fair Use Doctrine 
    *Unpublished works and news 
    *Parody vs. satire 
    *Home video taping 
    *Internet file sharing

Music licensing 
    *Compulsory licensing 
    *Blanket licensing / per-program licensing 
    *ASCAP / BMI 

International copyrights 
    *Berne Convention 
    *GATT 

New copyright laws 
    *Digital Millennium Copyright Act 
    *Fairness in Music Licensing Act 
    *Sonny Bono CTE Act 

Moral rights 

Unfair competition 

TRADEMARKS

Federal Lanham Act 

State trademarks 

Duration (forever) 

"Use it or lose it" 
    *Abandonment 
    *Falling into generic use 

Sounds, colors, numbers as trademarks 

INTERNET TRADEMARK QUESTIONS

Domain names
     *Registration
     *NSI / ICANN

Federal Trademark Dilution Act
     *allows lawsuits for tarnishing / blurring
          of famous trade names
     *applies to Internet

Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act
     *bans most "cybersquatting"
     *undercuts Avery Dennison v. Sumpton case
     *takes Panavision v. Toeppen approach
 

FAIR TRIAL-FREE PRESS

Sixth Amendment: right to trial 
    by an impartial jury 

Prejudicial publicity problem areas:
    *"Priors" 
    *Test results 
    *Confessions 
    *Hearsay evidence 

Major cases prior to Sheppard
    *Irvin v. Dowd
    *Rideau v. Louisiana

Remedies from the Sheppard case: 
    *Changes of venue 
    *Continuances 
    *Jury sequestration or admonitions 
    *Protective ("gag") orders 

Gag orders as prior restraints (Nebraska case) 

Closed Courtrooms during: 
    *Pretrial hearings (Gannett) *Trials (Richmond) 
    *Testimony by minors (Globe) 
    *Jury selection (Press-Enterprise I) 
    *Preliminary hearings (Press-Enterprise II) 
    *Civil court proceedings (NBC Subsidiary) 

Cameras in court 
    *Chandler decision 
    *California's Rule 980 
    *Federal rules 
    *Access in other states 

REPORTERS AND CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION

Contempt of Court 
    *Direct and indirect 
    *Civil and criminal 

Reporter's privilege 
    *Branzburg decision 
    *Mitchell decision (California) 
    *Guidelines 

Shield laws 
    *Calif. Constitution Art. I, Sec. 2(b) 
    *Exceptions and loopholes
    *Delaney, Miller, N.Y. Times Co. cases

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION

FoI laws (access to records) 
    *Federal FoI Act 
    *Electronic FoI Act Amendments (federal) 
    *Calif. Public Records Act 

Privacy laws 
    *Privacy Act of 1974 (federal) 
    *"Buckley Amendment" (FERPA of 1974) 
    *Info. Practices Act (Calif.) 

Open meeting laws 
    *Government in the Sunshine Act (federal) 
    *Bagley-Keene Act (Calif. state agencies) 
    *Ralph M. Brown Act (Calif. local governments) 

OBSCENITY AND THE FIRST AMENDMENT

Roth test (1957) judges obscenity by: 
    *Effect on the "average person" 
    *Contemporary community standards 
    *Dominant theme of the work as a whole 

Memoirs decision (1966) 
    *Roth test retained with "patent offensiveness" 
    *Work must utterly lack redeeming social value 

Miller decision (1973) 
    *Roth test still retained with "patent offensiveness" 
    *"Redeeming social value" test rejected 
    *Work must lack serious literary, artistic, political 
        or scientific value (SLAPS value), determined 
        by objective standard (Pope v. Illinois) 
    *Local standards permitted, within limits (despite 
        Jacobellis decision) 

Children and pornography 
    *Ginsberg, Ferber, Osborne and Ashcroft
    *Child Pornography Prevention Act

Local zoning and pornography 
    *Young, Schad and Renton

Indecency versus obscenity 
    *In the electronic media 
    *On the Internet
        (note Communications Decency Act / Reno case) 
        (and Child Online Protection Act)

ELECTRONIC MEDIA REGULATION: HISTORY

***Scarcity Rationale*** 

Radio Act of 1912 

Radio Act of 1927 

*Federal Radio Commission 

Communications Act of 1934 

*Federal Communications Commission 

1992 Cable Act 

1996 Telecommunications Act 

BROADCAST LICENSING

Table of allocations 

Construction permits/initial licensing 
    *Auctions, lotteries, preferences 
    *Comparative hearings 

License renewal 
    *"Renewal expectancy" 
    *License challenges ("Petitions to deny") 
    *Two-step review process (1996) 

PREFERENCES IN BROADCASTING

Bechtel Overturned local owner/manager preference 

Lamprecht: Overturned women's license preference 

Adarand: Overturned Metro Broadcasting
    (which had upheld minority preference) 

Tax Certificate Program: banned by act of Congress 

EEO (affirmative action in employment): overturned 
    by Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod v. FCC
 

Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod v. FCC case:

*FCC's minority EEO rules are unconstitutional 
    (women's EEO rules also undercut) 

*Religious broadcasters may hire believers for all 
    positions, not just on-air talent 

*FCC fine for alleged "lack of candor" overturned 

BROADCAST CONTENT REGULATION

Section 315 ("Equal Time Rule") 
    *Equal opportunities to buy time 
    *Mandatory federal access - Sec. 312(a)(7) 
    *Lowest unit charges - Sec. 315B 

Other content restrictions (examples) 
    *Children's TV Act of 1990 
    *Lottery rule 
    *Hoax rule 
    *Indecency rule (Pacifica, ACT cases) 
    *Fairness Doctrine (abolished 1987) 
    *New rules: V-chip system / content ratings 
        Kids' educational TV (3 hours/week) 
    *New proposals: free airtime for politicians, 
        liquor ad ban, prime time PSAs 

CABLE / SATELLITE TV  REGULATION

Federal regulation (Southwestern Cable case) 

Local franchising (Preferred Communications case) 

1992 Cable Act 
    *Must carry / retransmission consent 
    *Rate re-regulation 
    *Program access for cable's competitors 
    *Channel repositioning ban 

1996 Telecommunications Act 
    *Cable / telco / DBS competition 
    *Adult cable scrambling 
    *New rate regulation rules 
    *Preemption of local antenna restrictions 
    *Non-cable highlights: 
        Ban on internet indecency (Reno case) 
        Broadcast licensing and ownership rules 

1999 Satellite TV Home Viewers Act
     *allows DBS services to carry local stations
     *requires compensation to stations
     *imposes must-carry rule after 2002

ANTITRUST LAW AND THE MEDIA

Federal and state statutory laws 

The per se rule and rule of reason 

Remedies: 
    *Criminal sanctions by government agencies 
    *Civil lawsuits by government agencies 
    *Private civil lawsuits for treble damages 

Specific unlawful practices: 
    *Boycotts (Lorain Journal case) 
    *Tying arrangements (Times-Picayune case) 
    *Anti-competitive mergers (Times-Mirror case) 
    *Price fixing 
    *Profit pooling (Citizen Publishing case) 

Joint Operating Agreements 
    *Newspaper Preservation Act of 1970 

MEDIA OWNERSHIP RULES

Print/broadcast cross-ownership rules 

Duopoly rules and LMAs 

Radio ownership rules 
    *8 stations in 45+ station markets (5 max am/fm) 
    *7 in markets of 30-44 stations 
    *6 in markets of 15-29 stations 
    *5 or half in smaller markets 
        (but DoJ is watching...) 

Television ownership rules 
    *35% ceiling on TV households 
    *UHF discount 

THE FIRST AMENDMENT AND ADVERTISING

The commercial speech doctrine 
    *Valentine and Bigelow
    *The Central Hudson test 
    *Posadas and 44 Liquormart

Non-commercial corporate speech 
    *The Consolidated Edison test 

FEDERAL ADVERTISING REGULATION

Federal Trade Commission Act (1914) 

Wheeler-Lea Amendment 

Magnuson-Moss Act 

FTC enforcement tools 
    *Publicity 
    *Trade Regulation Rules 
    *Advisory guides 
    *Consent decrees 
    *Substantiation 
    *"Unfairness Doctrine" 
    *Corrective advertising 

Lanham Act and treble damages 

State "Printer's Ink" laws 

National Assn. of Attorneys General (NAAG)