Summer 2013 Silha Bulletin

Volume 18, Number 3

Below is the Table of Contents for the Summer 2013 edition of the Silha Bulletin.  Click on the title to read the full article.

Bulletin: Summer 2013: Volume 18, No. 3
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Director's Note
This issue of the Silha Bulletin features several articles on data privacy prepared by research attorney Jason Steck, J.D. (University of Minnesota Law School, class of 2012) and Silha Center Research Assistant Alex Vlisides under the supervision of Silha Professor Jane Kirtley. These articles will also appear, in a slightly different form, in “Global Privacy and Advertising Developments,” a chapter in the three-volume course handbook for the Practising Law Institute’s Communications Law in the Digital Age 2013 conference. The PLI conference takes place Nov. 14-15, 2013 in New York City, where Professor Kirtley will be the principal speaker for the panel discussion on these and related topics.
The Silha Center is very grateful to Jason and Alex for sharing the product of their hard work and expertise with readers of this issue of the Silha Bulletin.

— Jane E. Kirtley,
Silha Professor and Silha Center Director

Cover Story: Snowden Leaks Reveal Extensive National Security Agency Monitoring of Telephone and Internet Communication
On June 5, 2013, the Guardian newspaper published the first in a series of articles disclosing massive data gathering efforts by the U.S. National Security Agency (ASA). 

Surveillance: Britain Seeks to Update “Snooper” Legislation
British Prime Minister David Cameron’s government is seeking to reintroduce the 2012 Regulation of Investigative Powers Act (RIPA), labeled the “Snooper’s Charter” by its opponents, in order to expand the ability of law enforcement to access individuals’ phone and email data. 

Leaks: Manning Sentenced to 35 Years in Prison for Leaks
While NSA leader Edward Snowden faces the possibility of espionage charges while in asylum in Russia, U.S. Army leaker Bradley Manning was convicted of espionage in military court at Fort Meade, Md. on July 30, 2013. 

Reporter’s Privilege: Department of Justice Revises Guidelines for Investigating Journalists
In a May 23, 2013 speech on national security, President Barack Obama directed Attorney General Eric Holder to “review Justice Department guidelines for investigations that involve journalists,” (28 C.FR. §50.10) according to a report by the Huffington Post from the same day. 

FOIA: D.C. Circuit Upholds FOIA Denial on Bin Laden Photos
On May 21, 2013, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit released a per curiam opinion that upheld the U.S. government’s power to deny Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests for the release of photographs taken of the burial at sea of Osama bin Laden. 

Libel Reform: England and Wales Reform Archaic Libel Laws
On April 25, 2013, the British Parliament passed the Defamation Act 2013, which the Secretary of State is expected to allow to go into force by the end of the year. 

Right of Publicity: College Athletes Mount Challenges Seeking Control of Likenesses
Ryan Hart played quarterback for the Rutgers University football team from 2002 to 2005, setting school records during his college career. 

Defamation: Defamation Round-up: Recent Decisions and Pending Cases Put Defamation in Spotlight, Have Potential to Reshape Media-Friendly Laws
High-profile defamation cases, involving prominent parties or having the potential to alter media-friendly defamation law, made headlines in the summer of 2013. 

Data Privacy: Bloomberg News Confronts User Privacy in Wake of Financial Terminal Data Scandal
On May 10, 2013, the New York Post revealed the Bloomberg News reporters had been accessing user data from Bloomberg LP’s financial data terminals. 

Media Policy: Busy FCC Reviews Indecency Policy, Rules on Mobile Data Privacy
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) had a busy summer in 2013.  

Internet Filtering: British PM Calls for Nationwide Default Filters to Combat Internet Pornography
Opponents say sacrifices free speech and privacy, does not address root causes of sexual abuse.

Online Speech: Activists, U.S. Government Advocate Removal of User-Generated Content
In May 2013, interest groups and the U.S. State Department sought the removal of controversial user-generated content (UGC) from the Web in three separate incidents. 

Ethics: Gawker Media, Rolling Stone, and Oakland Fox Affiliate Spark Ethics Debates
Audiences witnessed three major controversies in journalism ethics over the summer of 2013.

Silha Center Events: James C. Goodale to Give 28th Annual Silha Lecture
James C. Goodale, vice chairman and general counsel of The New York Times during the Pentagon Papers litigation in 1971, will present the Silha Center’s 28th Annual Lecture, “The Lessons of the Pentagon Papers: Has Obama Learned Them?” on Oct. 16, 2013.