Volume 10, Number 3
Bulletin Spring 2005
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Top Story: Judges and Journalists on a Collision Course
The First Amendment to the Constitution guarantees “freedom of the press” — whatever that means.
Reporters Privilege News: Supreme Court Denies Cert. in Miller/Cooper Cases
After the U.S. Supreme Court declined on June 27, 2005 to hear the appeal involving reporters Judith Miller’s and Matt Cooper’s refusal to name their confidential sources in the Valerie Plame controversy, it seemed inevitable that the two reporters would go to jail.
Reporters Privilege News: Wen Ho Lee v. Department of Justice
Four reporters facing contempt charges were ordered on June 29, 2005, by a federal appeals court to reveal their sources or face fines of $500 a day.
Utah Newspaper is Protected by Neutral Reportage And Fair Comment Privileges in Libel Case
On May 5, a three-judge panel of the Utah Court of Appeals upheld a trial court dismissal of a defamation suit brought by Salt Lake resident Barbara Schwarz.
FOIA News: Lawmakers Respond to Increasing Government Secrecy with Amendments to Strengthen FOIA
On March 31, 2005, the U.S. Information Security Oversight Office (ISOO) released its annual report on the status of federal security classification programs.
FOIA News: FOIA Requestors are Charged High Fees by Government Entities
The U.S. government has told a citizen advocacy group that it will have to pay $372,799 in search fees before its Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. §552, request can be processed.
FOIA News: Federal Court Rules Delaware FOIA State Resident Restriction Unconstitutional
On May 13, 2005, U.S. District Judge Joseph J. Farnan, Jr. granted summary judgment in favor of a New York man who claimed that the Delaware Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), Del. Code Ann. tit. 29 §§ 10001-10005 was unconstitutional in Lee v. Minner, 2005 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 8892.
FOIA News: Coffin Photos Released Following FOIA Request
On April 28, 2005, the Pentagon released hundreds of photos of flag-draped caskets of American soldiers, in response to a lawsuit arising from a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. §552, request by Ralph J. Begleiter, a University of Delaware professor and former CNN correspondent.
FOIA News: Lardner v. Department of Justice
A Washington Post reporter has won a partial victory in requesting government documents about the presidential pardon power.
FOIA News: 911 Tapes Must Be Released Despite Claims of Harm
Neither a written transcript nor an opportunity to review tapes will satisfy the right of the public to have access to full copies of the audio recordings of 911 emergency calls under Ohio state law.
Access to Courts: Minnesota, Florida, and Federal Courts
On May 6, 2005, the Minnesota Supreme Court amended the Rules of Public Access to Records of the Judicial Branch (Access Rules), bringing an end to a process started in January 2002 to allow greater public access to Minnesota court records on the Internet.
Prior Restraint: Tory v. Cochran
On May 31, 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that an injunction barring a former client from saying anything in public about the lawyer Johnnie Cochran was an unconstitutional prior restraint on speech.
Prior Restraint: Johanns v. Livestock Marketing Association
The Supreme Court ruled on May 23, 2005 that cattle owners in the United States are not exempt from paying a fee that subsidizes government ad campaigns for beef, even if those owners disagree with the content of the ads.
Prior Restraint: Minnesota Blogger Offers Inside Story On Canadian “AdScam” Investigation
Equipped only with a home computer, a modem and some explosive information, a Minnesota blogger has become an unlikely player in Canadian politics.
Prior Restraint: Kennedy Faults Gag Order in Multimedia Holdings Case
Acting in his capacity as Circuit Justice, United States Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy denied a Florida news organization’s request to stay two court orders issued in July and August 2004 by the now-retired judge, Robert Mathis.
Prior Restraint: FEC Proposes Rules to Exempt Bloggers From Campaign Finance Law
The Federal Election Commission (FEC), the government agency which enforces federal election law, has issued proposed new rules for overseeing political campaigns on the Internet under the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002, Pub. L. 107-155, 116 Stat. 81 (2002), the campaign finance reform law also known as the McCain-Feingold Act.
Prior Restraint: CPB, PBS and NPR Face Controversy Over Funding and Focus of Public Broadcasting
The chairman of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) has embroiled the corporation and its two main beneficiaries, the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) and National Public Radio (NPR) in controversy, after advocating changes in public broadcasting.
Pentagon Launches New Channel
A new channel has joined the line-up of offerings at Time Warner Cable and Dish Network — the Pentagon Channel.
Freelance Writers Achieve Settlement from Big Media
Twenty-one freelance writers joined the National Writers Union (NWU), the Authors Guild, and the American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA) to secure up to $18 million in a settlement benefiting thousands of writers whose stories were published online without permission.
Media Ethics Updates: Newsweek Caught in Unnamed Sources Controversy
In a highly publicized incident involving the use of confidential sources, Newsweek magazine came under fire for a report it published in early May 2005.
Media Ethics Updates: “Gannon’s” Presence at White House Briefings Leads to Press Credentialing Questions
For two years, Jeff Gannon regularly attended press briefings by White House press secretary Scott McClellan and President George W. Bush.
Media Ethics Updates: Albom, Free Press Editors Disciplined for Erroneous Column Filed Prior to “Final-Four” Game
On April 1, 2005, as Mitch Albom was working on his nationally-syndicated sports column, he focused on a discussion between two National Basketball Association (NBA) players, Mateen Cleaves and Jesse Richardson, both former teammates at Michigan State University (MSU).
Endangered Journalists: French Journalist Released
A French journalist and her interpreter have been freed after being held hostage for five months in Iraq.
Endangered Journalists: Romanian Journalists Freed
Three Romanian journalists and their translator were released on May 22, 2005 after almost two months' captivity in Iraq.
Endangered Journalists: ABC News Reporter Claims He Was Fired for Refusing to Travel to War Zone
Richard Gizbert, a Canadian journalist who worked for ABC News in London, has sued his former employer in a British employment tribunal, alleging that he was unfairly dismissed for refusing to accept war-zone assignments in Iraq.
Silha Center Events: Silha Forum Addresses Ethics of Shielding Sources
The ethical issues raised when journalists are forced to choose between serving time in jail for contempt or face the consequences of revealing the identity of a source provided the basis for a Spring Forum sponsored by the Silha Center for the Study of Media Ethics and Law: “Confidential Sources: Where Ethics and Law Collide,” on April 27, 2005, in the McNamara Alumni Center on the University of Minnesota campus.