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Digital Journalist's Legal Guide
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Everything online journalists need to protect their legal rights. This free resource culls from all Reporters Committee resources and includes exclusive content on digital media law issues.

News

Format: 2013-05-07
Format: 2013-05-07
High court finds firing of road grader not sufficient reason for emergency meeting
May 17, 1994
High court finds firing of road grader not sufficient reason for emergency meeting 05/17/1994 NEBRASKA -- A meeting called to fire a road grader operator who got stuck during a snowstorm did not constitute an emergency under the open meetings law, the Nebraska Supreme Court ruled in late April. The minutes indicate the meeting was held to discuss the employee's performance, not an emergency, the court said. It declared the meeting void.
Representative seeks Internet access to bills
May 17, 1994
Representative seeks Internet access to bills 05/17/1994 WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Rep. Dick Zimmer (D-N.J.) in late April asked the House Administration Committee to make bills accessible over the Internet. In a letter to committee chairman Charlie Rose (D-S.C.), Zimmer noted that citizens can now purchase tapes of government bills from companies who buy the information from the Government Printing Office and subsequently offer it for sale.
Bill to make voter records secret amended to allow access by journalists
May 17, 1994
Bill to make voter records secret amended to allow access by journalists 05/17/1994 CALIFORNIA -- A bill pending before the state legislature makes voter records confidential. Yet an April amendment to the bill allows access to the information for "journalistic" purposes.
New York legislator proposes correction law with $100,000 fine for violators
May 3, 1994
New York legislator proposes correction law with $100,000 fine for violators 05/03/1994 NEW YORK -- A New York assemblyman sponsored legislation in late March to require newspapers to run corrections and retractions on the same page where the original was published within one week of notification or face a fine of up to $100,000.
World Cup requires FBI check for credentials
May 3, 1994
World Cup requires FBI check for credentials 05/03/1994 CALIFORNIA -- The committee organizing the World Cup soccer tournament is requiring that journalists agree to an FBI criminal history background check as a condition of obtaining credentials.
Appeals court clears way for retrial of suit in which jury awarded $5.7 million
May 3, 1994
Appeals court clears way for retrial of suit in which jury awarded $5.7 million 05/03/1994 NEW MEXICO -- The New Mexico Court of Appeals in Santa Fe refused in mid-April to consider appeals by both parties to a libel suit. The decision cleared the way for a retrial of the case, in which a state district court jury in Alamogordo had awarded the plaintiff $5.7 million, the Associated Press reported.
Inmate ends attempt to make author testify
May 3, 1994
Inmate ends attempt to make author testify 05/03/1994 LOUISIANA -- In early April a convicted killer seeking a new trial ended his attempt to compel the testimony of an author who wrote a book about the murder. The convict, William Fontanille, agreed to a stipulation with the state as to what the author, Joseph Bosco, would have said.
Agency prepares 16 answers for officials to use regardless of the questions
May 3, 1994
Agency prepares 16 answers for officials to use regardless of the questions 05/03/1994 UTAH -- Deseret News reporter Brent Israelson in late April obtained and reported on a federal agency memorandum that outlines 16 answers exclusively appropriate for the press regardless of what questions are asked.
Court rules that justification form that accompanies gun permits not public record
May 3, 1994
Court rules that justification form that accompanies gun permits not public record 05/03/1994 IOWA -- A sheriff has no duty to maintain weapon permit justification forms, so that part of the application to carry a gun is not public record, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled in late April, refusing to force a sheriff to collect the justification forms he returned to gun applicants after a lower court ordered them disclosed.
Attorney general's opinion holds call-in sheets are public record
May 3, 1994
Attorney general's opinion holds call-in sheets are public record 05/03/1994 KENTUCKY -- Releasing unedited sheets that record public comments and questions from callers during televised city commission meetings does not necessarily invade the callers' privacy, the attorney general ruled in late March.
Host, producer of public access feature convicted of violating obscenity law
May 3, 1994
Host, producer of public access feature convicted of violating obscenity law 05/03/1994 TEXAS -- In what may be the first obscenity prosecution against a public access channel, the host and producer of a two-hour "Infosex" feature last August on Austin Community Television in late April were placed on a year's probation and ordered to perform 200 hours of community service.
Judge rejects gag order in shooting case
May 3, 1994
Judge rejects gag order in shooting case 05/03/1994 NEW YORK -- A New York County judge refused to issue a gag order in late April in the case of a man charged with killing six people on a Long Island Railroad commuter train. Nassau County Judge Donald Belfi temporarily granted the prosecution's request to ban the attorneys from talking about the case with the media while he considered a defense motion opposing it.
News council denounces paper for reader survey
May 3, 1994
News council denounces paper for reader survey 05/03/1994 MINNESOTA -- The Minnesota News Council held a public hearing in late April denouncing the Worthington Daily Globe for the way it conducted a survey on readers' opinions about minorities. Last fall the Globe posed the question, "Has Worthington been enhanced by the recent influx of minority groups" and asked readers to send in their opinions.
State high court strikes down law regulating sale of 'erotic sound recordings'
May 3, 1994
State high court strikes down law regulating sale of 'erotic sound recordings' 05/03/1994 WASHINGTON -- The Washington Supreme Court in Olympia in mid-April struck down as unconstitutional the state's law that regulated the sale of "erotic sound recordings." The 1992 law was challenged by a coalition of musicians including Nirvana, the rock band headed by the late Kurt Cobain.
Texas court rules journalists must testify in criminal proceeding
April 19, 1994
Texas court rules journalists must testify in criminal proceeding 04/19/1994 TEXAS -- The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals in Austin, the state's highest court for criminal cases, in mid-April held that journalists have no constitutional privilege to withhold evidence relevant to a criminal prosecution. By a 5-4 vote, the Court of Criminal Appeals said that a County Court at Law judge in Richmond must vacate an order that quashed a subpoena issued to four television journalists.