Law of the Press Assignment
This Assignment includes the materials that you learned over the course. However, each case/ question has certain instruction, please follow them as directed. This Assignment requires you to review your First Amendment Handbook and refer to the class notes and related material. I listed the Materials/Concepts at the end of the Assignment paper that these questions may include.

Note: Please write precisely, check your spelling and grammar. Answer has to be in a formal way and clear.

1. Three former staffers at the Department of Justice have contacted you regarding practices they believe are illegal under federal statutes. In short, they believe that the boss of their unit has been taking bribes from people charged with low-level federal crimes. When the boss gets “paid off,” she makes sure that the charges filed against these defendants are charges that she cannot adequately prove in trial – so even though she takes the cases to trial, she really won’t win them. You believe that your informants have at least a good superficial case, though it will take a lot of research to prove.
Problems:
A. As you are in the process of researching, a high-level official from the FBI contacts you and tells you there is an active investigation on the practices in the office, and that your paper cannot print the story now because it would compromise the investigation. What issue does this bring up for you?
B. The Department of Justice will not give you any of the data you have requested about the trial win/loss records of the woman in question. What federal law would you use to get the information?
C. The FBI has threatened to prosecute you unless you tell them who you have been talking to. What concept might protect your sources?
D. The Department of Justice says that printing the story would be an example of speech prohibited by Brandenburg. Do you agree? Why or why not?

2. You are covering an obscenity trial in a state court. The defendant is a well-known local portrait photographer (Patty Photographer) who is known for, among other things, chronicling the lives of her children in photographs. Now 13 and 15, her daughters are the subject of a current museum exhibit featuring Patty’s work. The name of the exhibit is “On the Verge of Innocence: Girls to Women.” Many of the pictures are just the girls doing teenaged things, but one wall of the exhibit is a picture of the girls together, topless, every year since their birth. (Related to Millar Test)

A. List the 3 parts of the Miller test that must be met in order for a prosecution for obscenity to be successful.
B. In 100 words or less, describe if you think the tests have been met.
C. If you wanted to do a television documentary on the controversy, and you needed to show the pictures, are there any broadcast standards or guidelines you should think about meeting ?
3. In a high profile criminal trial involving a jury, a media-friendly judge has allowed cameras in the courtroom, interviews with witnesses after testimony, and generally given wide latitude to journalists covering the trial. If the defendant was found guilty, he or she might later claim that a fair trial was impossible given the kind of media attention it received. Don’t make a fact situation. (Relates to six amendment)

A. What does Sheppard v. Maxwell say about free press v. fair trial? Does it provide a good guideline?
B. Name 2 types of reporter activity that would probably be considered unfair publicity in this case.
C. Who has the ultimate obligation to ensure a fair trial?

4. Which of the following is the best and clearest example of appropriation? And in one sentence relate the elements of appropriation to your choice.

A. A local theatre group does a television rip-off of Saturday Night Live
B. The group uses a picture of Drunk Uncle on the flyer, saying “This show will even make your drunk uncle laugh.”
C. Instead of Drunk Uncle, the flyer has a picture of the actual Mayor, with the line “100% certifiably funny!, says Mayor Tom.”
D. Instead of “Drunk Uncle” the flyer has a picture of a local car dealer on it, saying “Come on down for a real good time!”

5. Which of the following is likely to be a copyright violation if used without permission? (Actual Rules of Copyright)

A. Writing a book called “The New Adventures of the Apostle Paul” with extensive use of Biblical passages and ancient interpretive documents.
B. Using several lengthy passages from Senator McCain’s speeches on the Senate floor in a word art exhibit protesting the military.
C. Performing a song written by an artist who died in 2001, even though you have done your own arrangement of the song.
D. Purchasing a copy of a computer software program and making a single copy that the people at your office can share.

6. Reporter’s dilemmas: (Internet related- please put the reference website that you used for each Questions below).
A. Find out if there is a shield law in Kansas, and if there is, link to it here.
B. How does California define “obscene live conduct” ? (link)
C and D. -Using the rcfp.org resources (Open Government Guide), compare one point between state meeting laws in two different states. (The result does not have to be different)

7. Based on your own thought an experience so far, what do you think are (or will be) the hardest legal issues for a journalist to navigate? And why? (No more than 3 sentences)

8. List two reasons that television and radio are regulated more heavily than the web.

Law of the Press Assignment This Assignment includes the material...