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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: 2013-05-06
Format: 2013-05-06
Minnesota appeals court overturns jury award against blogger
August 21, 2012
John Hoff did not lie. Because of that, the Minneapolis blogger will not be held liable for the firing of a University of Minnesota employee. A three-member panel of the Minnesota Court of Appeals on Monday overturned a $60,000 award against Hoff, a blogger who publishes “The Adventures of Johnny Northside.”
Federal appeals court rules against magazine that published copyrighted secret celebrity wedding photos
August 17, 2012
A federal appellate court ruled that a Spanish-language gossip magazine violated the copyrights of a celebrity couple by publishing private photographs of their secret wedding in a case that according to the court “reads like a telenovela."
Federal court relies on state secrets doctrine to dismiss several claims in secret surveillance suit
August 16, 2012
A federal court dismissed nearly all of the claims in a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the FBI spying on Muslim Americans, ruling that the government could invoke the “state secrets” privilege to avoid almost all litigation.
Tech companies in lawsuit must identify paid journalists and bloggers, federal court rules
August 15, 2012
Media advocates are concerned about a federal court order that compels two technology companies involved in a drawn-out patent infringement lawsuit to disclose the names of writers they paid to comment about the case. Google and Oracle, a computer technology corporation, have until Friday to identify any journalists or bloggers they paid for writing about the case, ruled Judge William Alsup of the U.S. District Court in San Francisco.
OpenCourt can record Mass. jury trials, state high court judge rules
August 15, 2012
OpenCourt, a Massachusetts courtroom transparency program can begin streaming video of jury trials at a local district court, a judge from the state’s highest court ruled on Tuesday.
Calif. appellate court affirms dismissal of libel suit against Gawker under state's anti-SLAPP law
August 15, 2012
A California appellate court upheld the dismissal of a libel suit brought by the head of a small startup tech company against the Internet blogging company Gawker Media.
N.H. activist sentenced to 90 days for recording, disclosing phone conversations with public officials
August 14, 2012
A New Hampshire activist was found guilty on Monday in connection with recording telephone conversations with public officials without their consent and sentenced to 90 days in jail. A state legislator present in court said the "travesty" fueled him to further push for legislation to change the state's law requiring all-party consent in recordings.
Colo. judge upholds majority of sealing and gag orders in Aurora movie theater shooting case
August 14, 2012
The judge presiding over the fatal Colorado movie theater shooting case granted the release of about three dozen relevant court documents on Monday, but kept many of the records under seal.
Colo. judge weighs news organizations' request to unseal court documents in Aurora shooting trial
August 10, 2012
The judge in the shooting-spree case against James Holmes heard arguments Thursday on why court documents should be publicly available, but did not rule on the motion. More than 20 news organizations are asking Chief District Judge William Sylvester to reconsider his decision to seal court documents in the case against Holmes, accused of killing 12 and wounding 58 people at an Aurora movie theater last month.
Va. court dismisses libel charges against newspaper brought by public official
August 9, 2012
A Virginia trial court threw out a $3 million libel verdict against a local newspaper, finding that a local school official failed to show that the allegedly defamatory article was published with actual malice.
Attorney asks U.S. Supreme Court to consider constitutionality of years-old blanket sealing order
August 6, 2012
The U.S. Supreme Court recently released dozens of documents about a businessman turned government witness as part of a request that the high court find that a 12-year-old blanket sealing order in the case amounts to an unconstitutional prior restraint.
New York Times freelance photographer arrested and allegedly beaten
August 6, 2012
Media advocates are expressing outrage over the arrest of a New York Times freelance photographer Saturday night. New York police allegedly knocked the journalist to the ground, beat him and took his two cameras and press credentials.
Website with links to infringing videos does not violate copyright laws, court rules
August 3, 2012
A social media website on which users have provided links to copyrighted videos from third-party servers has not itself violated copyright laws, a federal court ruled yesterday. Although the case involves copyright claims for adult entertainment videos originally made by Flava Works, a gay pornography production company, the court’s ruling could also affect online news publishers that embed or link to other kinds of copied content.
Access to arrest records can be limited, Conn. appellate court rules
August 1, 2012
A Connecticut appellate court ruled this week in favor of restricting access to police records under the state’s Freedom of Information Act.
Open government advocates oppose Senate's anti-leak measures passed with much secrecy
July 31, 2012
The U.S. Senate is expected to vote in the coming days on a controversial intelligence authorization bill, which was passed in a closed senate committee session last week. Journalists and advocates of government transparency are lobbying in opposition of the bill, which contains anti-leak provisions that could severely hinder the newsgathering process.