MC 2000 Lecture : Noteswap Mass Comm Media Law Part 2
Document Summary
3 main types of u. s. governmental controls of media content: regulation of content before distribution, regulation of content after distribution, economic regulations. Prior restraint- when government restricts speech before its made. Supreme court has allowed regulation of content: obscenity, military operations, copyright, courtroom proceedings, education, commercial speech. It is narrowly defined, particularly in reference to the concept of a clear & present danger . Key cases: the pentagon papers 1971- vietnam war was ongoing, staffer of nixon administration gives papers to ny times of recent conversation with jfk. Went to supreme court, upholds ny times rights to print papers because no clear & present danger, also it was old conversations/ news. The supreme court was protecting the public and press: the progressive 1979- got hands on how to create hydrogen bonds & printed it, justice department didn"t like that. Progressive stops printing, but other magazines started to print. Justice department backs off & it never went to the supreme court.
