Summary -
A coalition of 18 national and state news organizations is asking the Maryland Supreme Court to reject an “emergency” proposal that would sharply limit press and public access to criminal court proceedings....more
Summary -
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has released a new rule sharply limiting government subpoenas that could unmask journalists’ sources....more
Following revelations about secret Trump Administration subpoenas for journalists’ phone and email records, Congress has introduced a bill to curb the government’s power to investigate the news media....more
Summary -
A New York appeals court ruling on June 24 in the Porco v. Lifetime case provides much-needed clarity to film and television producers and entertainment companies that docudramas blending true facts with dramatic...more
Journalists may face less risk for commonplace investigative computer reporting techniques thanks to a ruling today from the U.S. Supreme Court....more
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The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued an opinion letter on January 19, 2021, that finds a broader swath of journalists and media personnel may be creative professionals exempt from the minimum wage and...more
Summary -
The Federal Aviation Association (FAA) released two long-awaited rules expanding the operations of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) or drones....more
The Federal Aviation Administration has announced plans that would allow the government to monitor all drone operations – including aerial journalists’ flights – in real time. ...more
12/31/2019
/ Airspace ,
Comment Period ,
Commercial Use ,
Drones ,
Electronic Identification ,
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ,
NPRM ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Self-Identification ,
Unmanned Aircraft Systems
U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly in an oral ruling at 10 a.m. today ordered the White House to return CNN correspondent Jim Acosta's White House "hard pass" immediately. ...more
11/19/2018
/ CNN ,
Donald Trump ,
Due Process ,
Fifth Amendment ,
Freedom of the Press ,
Journalism ,
Journalists ,
News Stories ,
Public Interest ,
TRO ,
Trump Administration
Good news for internet hosts: NAFTA's replacement, the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), will extend the immunity Congress provided with Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 (CDA) into...more
10/5/2018
/ Canada ,
Communications Decency Act ,
Foreign Relations ,
FOSTA ,
Free Trade Agreements ,
Governmental Immunity ,
Internet ,
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) ,
Mexico ,
NAFTA ,
Sex Trafficking ,
Trade Relations ,
Trump Administration ,
United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) ,
US Trade Policies
A federal judge has ruled that the First Amendment prohibits President Donald J. Trump from blocking Twitter users because of political disagreements....more
5/25/2018
/ Blocked Person ,
Declaratory Judgments ,
Discrimination ,
Donald Trump ,
First Amendment ,
Free Speech ,
Government Speech Doctrine ,
Online Platforms ,
Public Forum ,
Social Media ,
Twitter
As Congress considers repealing a certain type of statutory immunity for web hosts, a federal appeals court handed Google a victory under the same law. The timing of these events may portend an uncertain future of the...more
With the midterm spring primary election season looming, many educational institutions are witnessing heightened political awareness and activism among students and employees. ...more
3/28/2018
/ 501(c)(3) ,
Colleges ,
Educational Institutions ,
First Amendment ,
Free Speech ,
Political Expression ,
Political Speech ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Protests ,
Students ,
Universities
A federal appeals court has ruled that a former Miami Dolphins coach—accused of bullying a player—did not have a valid defamation claim against a law firm that investigated the team's locker room culture....more
2/13/2018
/ Actual Malice ,
Appeals ,
Defamation ,
False Statements ,
First Amendment ,
Football ,
Internal Investigations ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
NFL ,
Public Figures ,
Workplace Bullying
A Las Vegas judge, at the urging of a coalition of news media organizations and over the objection of police, today ordered the release of sealed search warrant materials connected to the investigation of the largest mass...more
A California law that prohibits merchants from imposing a surcharge on credit card purchases violates the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, a unanimous panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has...more
1/9/2018
/ Appeals ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Credit Card Surcharges ,
Credit Cards ,
Debit and Credit Card Transactions ,
Expressions Hair Design v Schneiderman ,
Financial Services Industry ,
First Amendment ,
Free Speech ,
Merchants ,
Retail Market ,
Retailers ,
Summary Judgment
The White House has announced a new Department of Transportation (DOT) pilot program for state, local, and tribal governments "to test the further integration of" drones into the national airspace....more
10/27/2017
/ Airspace ,
Commercial Use ,
Department of Transportation (DOT) ,
Drones ,
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ,
Federal Pilot Programs ,
Journalism ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
State and Local Government ,
Technology Sector ,
Tribal Governments ,
Trump Administration ,
Unmanned Aircraft Systems
First Amendment retaliation claims may be getting harder to pursue for state employees, as courts seem increasingly likely to view speech as part of the employees' roles as public officials rather than as private citizens....more
Alarmingly high defamation damages—such as Hulk Hogan's $140 million Florida verdict against Gawker and a broadcast network's reported $177 million settlement with a South Dakota beef producer—are disturbing recent...more