Communication Law This fully revised third edition brings a fresh approach to the fundamentals of mass media and communication law in a presentation that undergraduate students fi nd engaging and accessible. Designed for students of communication who are new to law, this volume presents key principles and emphasizes the impact of timely, landmark cases on today’s media world, providing an applied learning experience. This new edition offers expanded coverage of digital media law and social media; a wealth of new case studies; expanded discussions of current political, social, and cultural issues; and new features focused on ethical considerations and on international comparative law. Communication Law serves as a core textbook for undergraduate courses in communication and mass media law. Online resources for instructors, including an Instructor’s Manual, Test Bank, and PowerPoint slides, are available at: www.routledge.com/9780367546694 Dom Caristi, PhD, Professor of Media. Caristi joined the Ball State faculty in 1998 and is a founding member and Associate Director of the Digital Policy Institute at that university. A member of the Broadcast Education Association for more than 30 years, he served on the Board of Directors (1997–2002), including a term as its Vice President. William R. Davie, PhD, Professor of Communication. Davie holds the Board of Regents Professorship of Communication at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and has been a member of the faculty since 1993. He is the head of the Mass Communication/Broadcast sequence and has served as interim department head and graduate program coordinator. L aurie Thomas Lee, PhD, Professor of Broadcasting in the College of Journalism and Mass Communications at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Lee joined the faculty full time in 1994. She is a recipient of the James A. Lake Academic Freedom award and has served as an Executive Vice Chancellor Faculty Fellow, giving presentations on the First Amendment and academic freedom. Communication Law Practical Applications in the Digital Age 3rd Edition D om Caristi, William R. Davie, and Laurie Thomas Lee Third edition published 2022 by Routledge 605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158 and by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2022 Dom Caristi, William R. Davie, and Laurie Thomas Lee T he right of Dom Caristi, William R. Davie, and Laurie Thomas Lee to be identifi ed as authors of this work has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice : Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identifi cation and explanation without intent to infringe. First edition published by Taylor & Francis 2012 Second edition published by Taylor & Francis 2018 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data A catalog record for this book has been requested ISBN: 978-0-367-55036-3 (hbk) ISBN: 978-0-367-54669-4 (pbk) ISBN: 978-1-003-09166-0 (ebk) DOI: 10.4324/9781003091660 Typeset in Palatino by Apex CoVantage, LLC Access the Support Material: www.routledge.com/9780367546694 Contents Acknowledgments vii About the Authors ix 1 SOURCES OF LAW AND SYSTEMS OF JUSTICE 1 2 FIRST AMENDMENT IN PRINCIPLE AND PRACTICE 29 3 SEDITION AND CENSORSHIP 55 4 FORUMS OF FREEDOM 85 5 LIBEL 113 6 PRIVACY 147 7 INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY 191 8 BROADCASTING AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS 247 9 DIGITAL ONLINE MEDIA 279 10 OBSCENITY AND INDECENCY 311 11 ADVERTISING LAW 345 12 MEDIA BUSINESS LAW 377 13 MEDIA AND COURTS 407 14 FREEDOM OF ACCESS 441 Case Index 467 Subject Index 473 Acknowledgments As anyone who has ever written a textbook knows, authors are only a part of the process. We need to thank the many people who contributed to this work. Obvious among those are the contributors who provided our unique “From the Trenches” features. We also would like to thank our reviewers for providing valuable feedback during the writing process and the production people at Taylor & Francis. We wish to acknowledge the proofreading and art research by Emilie G. Montagnet. We are all fortunate to work at wonderful universities with very supportive departments and colleagues. We thank our colleagues at the University of Louisiana Lafayette, Ball State University, and the University of Nebraska. Our colleagues and students have been sources of both formal and informal feedback, and our work is guided by their wisdom. About the Authors Dom Caristi, PhD, Professor of Media C aristi joined the Ball State faculty in 1998 and is a founding member and Asso- ciate Director of the Digital Policy Institute at that university. In 2012 he received the Outstanding Faculty Member Award from Ball State. He previously taught at Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota, Iowa State University, and Missouri South- ern, where he also managed the university’s low-power television station. He was a Fulbright professor in Slovenia in 1995 and in Greece in 2009 and has been a visiting professor in Italy with the Kentucky Institute for International Studies and AHA International. His BA is from the University of Miami, his MA from the University of Central Missouri, and his PhD from the University of Iowa. He has served fellow- ships with the Radio Television News Directors Association and the National Asso- ciation of Television Program Executives. In 1998 he received the Distinguished Service Award from the Iowa Broadcasters Association. A member of the Broadcast Education Association for more than 30 years, he served on the Board of Directors (1997–2002), including a term as its Vice President. W illiam R. Davie, PhD, P rofessor of Communication D avie holds the Board of Regents Professorship of Communication at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and has been a member of the faculty since 1993. He is the head of the Mass Communication/Broadcast sequence and has served as interim department head and graduate program coordinator. He coedited and contributed chapters to First Amendment Law in Louisiana (UL Lafayette Press, 2015) and con- tributed chapters, articles, and essays to books and journals in journalism and mass communication. He has served as a Fulbright Teaching Scholar in China and has received the Edward L. Bliss Award for Distinguished Broadcast Journalism Edu- cation. He served as the AEJMC liaison and ex offi cio board member for the Radio Television Digital News Association and received a fellowship through that orga- nization. He has taught at Texas Christian University and Texas A&M University, where he served as news director for the university’s NPR radio and PBS television stations. His BA is from Austin College, his MA from the University of Missouri, and his PhD from the University of Texas at Austin. L aurie Thomas Lee, PhD, Professor of Broadcasting L ee is a professor in the College of Journalism and Mass Communications at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, having joined the faculty full-time in 1994. She is a recipient of the James A. Lake Academic Freedom Award and has served as an Exec- utive Vice Chancellor Faculty Fellow, giving presentations on the First Amendment and academic freedom. She has served as President of the Academic Freedom Coali- tion of Nebraska (AFCON) as well as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Nebraska. At UNL, she has served as interim department head as well as Graduate Program chair and a member of the NU Executive Graduate Council. Formerly head of the Communication Technology & Policy division of the Association for Educa- tion in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) as well chair of the AEJMC Membership Committee, she is a longtime member of the Law divisions of AEJMC and the Broadcast Education Association (BEA). Lee has been a special issue coedi- tor for the Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly (JMCQ) and has served on the