JRNL 11 – Prof. Vaccaro – Hofstra University

*Media Law and Media Ethics

*Question 1

*You are the online editor of your school newspaper. A person using a pseudonym has posted a message on your site that could be libelous. If you don’t remove the posting, the paper will be liable for the info in the message if a lawsuit is filed. True or False?

*Answer: FALSE

*Paper is not liable for posts by a third party

*Federal Communications Decency Act grants immunity to web operators and Internet providers

*If you create part of the message by editing it, you could be considered a “content provider” and be liable in a lawsuit

*Web is a global medium, so you could be liable in other countries

*Lesson: Monitor postings, have security checks, have a mission statement about posting directly to your site

*Question 2

*You have visited a website that has a graphic you want to use in your campus newspaper or your radio station’s website. The site does not contain any copyright notice so you can use the graphic without permission. True or false?

*Answer: FALSE

*All material on internet is copyrighted as soon as it’s created

*It does not need to have a copyright notice to be protected by U.S. copyright laws

*Question 3

*Any columns labeled “opinion” or editorials published in your newspaper cannot be considered libelous regardless of the information they contain. True or false?

*Answer: FALSE

*You may express opinions without impunity

*If you publish an allegation that is false and damaging to a person’s reputation, you can be sued for libel no matter where it is published in a newspaper or website

*i.e. Criticize a performer for a bad performance, but alleging drug use would be libelous

*Question 4

*You are posting a video on YouTube. If you use just a portion of a popular song in your video, you will not be violating copyright laws. True or false?

*Answer: FALSE

*Violation of copyright law by using all or a portion that you did not create yourself

*YouTube specifically states that all components of the video must be original … music, design, images and video

*Libel

*Libel is essentially a false and defamatory attack in written form on a person’s reputation or character.

*Oral or spoken defamation is slander

*Key factors in libel suits to consider:

*Are you publishing something that you aren’t sure is truthful?

*Are you carelessly publishing something that is inaccurate?

*Are you publishing something accusatory that you haven’t checked out?

*Are you publishing something that clearly identifies a person and harms that person’s reputation?

*Times v. Sullivan

*On March 29, 1960, the New York Times carried a full-page advertisement titled "Heed Their Rising Voices”, which solicited funds to defend Martin Luther King, Jr. against an Alabama perjury indictment.

*The advertisement described actions against civil rights protesters, some of them inaccurately, some of which involved the police force of Montgomery, Alabama.

*Although the Montgomery Public Safety commissioner, L. B. Sullivan, was not named in the advertisement, the inaccurate criticism of the actions by the police was considered as defamation against him as well by virtue of his position and duty to supervise the police department.

*Times v. Sullivan

*Established actual malice

*Actual malice is a condition required to establish libel against public officials or public figures and is defined as "knowledge that the information was false" or that it was published "with reckless disregard of whether it was false or not.”

*It is one of the key decisions supporting the freedom of the press.

*RESULT: Times v. Sullivan

*The Court ruled for The Times, 9–0. The rule of law applied by the Alabama courts was found constitutionally deficient for failure to provide the safeguards for freedom of speech and of the press that are required by the First and Fourteenth Amendments in a libel action brought by a public official against critics of his official conduct. The decision further held that under the proper safeguards the evidence presented in this case is constitutionally insufficient to support the judgment for Sullivan.

*Sullivan sued four black ministers mentioned in the ad, specifically Ralph Abernathy, S.S. Seay, Sr., Fred Shuttlesworth, and Joseph Lowery. Sullivan won $500,000 in an Alabama court judgment.[5]

*Public officials

*Who is a public official (for purpose of libel)?

*Elected officials

*Candidates for office

*Appointed officials (with authority to set policy for government)

*Most courts rule police officials as public officials

*Importance of accuracy

*Every mistake hurts credibility of your name and your organization

*Be sure to double check your work!

*Showing copy to sources: Only for accuracy, never to make actual changes

*Ethical reasoning

*1. Define the dilemma. Consider all the problems the story or photograph will pose.

*2. Examine all your alternatives. You can publish, not publish, wait for a while until you get more info before publishing, display the story or photo prominently or in a lesser position, or choose other options.

*3. Justify your decision. Weigh the harms and the benefits of publication, or weigh such factors as relevance and importance of the story to the public.

*Poynter Institute Model

*Should ask these questions before making a decision in ethical dilemma:

*Why am I concerned about this story, photo or graphic?

*What is the news? What good would publication do?

*Is the information complete and accurate, to the best of my knowledge?

*Am I missing an important point of view?

*What does my reader need to know?

*How would I feel if the story or photo were about me or a member of my family?

*What are the likely consequences of publication? What good or harm could result?

*What are my alternatives?

*Will I be able to clearly and honestly explain my decision to anyone who challenges it?

*Print it or not?

*In a story about abortion, a sophomore girl admits to having had an abortion as a freshman. She is willing to go on the record, but you suspect it's in part because she wants to get back at her parents, with whom she does not get along. Should you print her name? Should you print the story? What caveats do you have for the reporters and editors working on this story? What's the ethical thing to do?

*Print it or not?

*A teacher tells you something in an interview that she later asks you not to print because of her concern that her comments will result in her perhaps being fired from her job. She knows the comments were on the record, but she has since decided that the comments were inappropriate and inflammatory. Should you print her comments? What should the reporters/editors consider? What's the ethical thing to do?

*Print it or not?

*For a story about teenage pregnancy, a teenage mother identifies the father, who is still a student. He doesn't want his name in the story and is officially denying paternity. Should you print his name? What should the reporters/editors consider? What's the ethical thing to do?

*Print it or not?

*A school bus driver in the district has been fired for leaving the bus to, in his words, "protect a young student from danger" from an out-of-control parent at a school bus stop. You are investigating the story and have interviewed the driver, but school district officials are not talking to you. They also are trying to prevent you from printing the story. Should you print it? With or without comment from the district? What should the reporters/editors consider? What's the ethical thing to do?

*Print it or not?

*A reporter has learned, on the eve of the playoffs, that your championship football team is involved in serious incidents of hazing during the pre-season overnight football camp held on campus. Should you print the story? What should the reporters/editors consider? What's the ethical thing to do?

*Coaching tips

*Check your story for accuracy

*Seek documents to substantiate sources’ claims

*Check resumes and other materials from sources

*Seek sources with alternate points of view

*Do not copy info from website without permission or attribution

*Don’t use online info you can’t verify

*Principles of Journalism

*Five Nearly Absolute Principles

*Be a humane truth-teller

*Be heedful of the rights of others

*Do your work fairly

*Promote justice wherever possible within the limits of your craft/profession

*Be mindful that independence and freedom are possible only if journalism itself acts as a steward of free expression

*From University of Missouri professor Edmund Lambeth's book, "Committed Journalism”

*Next class

*Thursday, Oct. 25

*AP Style Quiz – bring your style guide!

*Workshop session … in-class assignment TBD