Volume 7, Number 2
Bulletin Winter 2002
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The USA PATRIOT Act: How Patriotic Is It?
This essay originally appeared in the December 2001 Libel Defense Resource Center’s (LDRC) LibelLetter.
Cameras Banned at Trial of Alleged Terrorist
Even though alleged terrorist Zacarias Moussaoui has himself requested cameras at his conspiracy trial, U.S. District Court Judge Leonie Brinkema (E.D. Va.) on Jan. 18, 2002 denied the motion of the Courtroom Television Network (Court TV) to broadcast the pretrial and trial proceedings.
Appeals Court Rules Ban on Hyperlinks Constitutional
On Nov. 28, 2001, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit unanimously ruled in Universal City Studios v. Corley (273 F 3d 429 (2001)) that an injunction prohibiting web sites from publishing hyperlinks to another site which contains information on how to unlawfully copy DVDs and other digital material is constitutional.
Digital Company Creates Ethics Guidelines
DigitalCustom, a production company in the business of custom editing digital photographs and still images, sponsored the first version (release version #1.0) of ethics guidelines for editing digital images on Feb. 24, 2002.
Autopsy Records Laws Restricting Access
A year after his death in the Daytona 500, the battle over the access to Dale Earnhardt’s autopsy photos continues.
“Television and the War on Terrorism”
“Television and the War on Terrorism,” a series on how the events of September 11 transformed the national consciousness, was shown live February 11-13 and March 6-7, 2002.
Book on Torture Leads to Fines for French General
Should all political speech be protected, even if it is used to justify the unjustifiable?
Vanessa Leggett Released from Jail
On Jan. 4, 2002, aspiring writer Vanessa Leggett was freed after serving 168 days in the Federal Detention Center in Houston, Texas.
Internet Speech Threatened by Global Standards
Potential restrictions on internet news services were averted at UNESCO’s General Conference that took place October 15 - November 3, 2001.
French Court’s Order Against Yahoo! Not Enforceable in United States
A French court’s order seeking to force Yahoo! to either prevent French users from viewing Nazi memorabilia or pay a fine of $13,000 a day is not enforceable in the United States, a federal judge in San Jose, CA., ruled on Nov. 7, 2001.
Minnesota Shield Law Facing Test
Wally Wakefield, a Minnesota reporter, has been ordered by Ramsey County District Court Judge Dale B. Lindman to pay a $200 per day fine for refusing to identify confidential sources he used in a story he wrote five years ago.
Tape Confiscated from Maplewood Journalists
On October 26, 2001, the federal District Court in Minnesota rejected two Minnesota journalists’ lawsuits against the City of Maplewood and four police officers for ejecting them from a community banquet and confiscating their tape of the event on Dec. 28, 1999.
Silha Forum Focuses on Computers, the Constitution, Criminal Investigations
The Silha Center’s Fall 2001 Forum, entitled “The Constitution, Criminal Investigations and Digital Media,” was timely following the events of Sept. 11, 2001 and the passage of the USA PATRIOT Act.
Spring Silha Forum Will Feature MSNBC.com Ombudsman
The Spring Silha Forum, scheduled for April 10, 2002, will feature MSNBC.com ombudsman Dan Fisher.
Silha Director to Participate in “Great Conversations”
Jane Kirtley, Silha Director and Silha Professor, will take part in a conversation with Brian Lamb, creator and CEO of C-SPAN on Tuesday, April 2, 2002, at 7:30 p.m.