Media Law Prof Blog

More Suits Filed Against Cinemark Over Colorado "Dark Knight" Shootings

Cinemark is facing more lawsuits in the aftermath of the deadly shootings at an Aurora, Colorado theater July 20. The mother of one victim has filed one suit, and two survivors have filed another against Cinemark, the owner of the Century 16 theater where the shootings took place. The suits, filed in federal court, claim that the theater and its employees could have prevented the harm to attendees that night, and that employees failed to assist customers afterwards. More here.

French Company Sues Ion TV Over Breach

The French company Atlantique is suing Ion TV over its refusal to complete a deal that would have brought the tv show Le Grand, starring French star Jean Reno (The Da Vinci Code, Jet Lag) to the US network. The series would have been Ion's first original scripted show. It's unclear what derailed the negotiations. More here from The Hollywood Reporter.

 

Peter Berg To Mitt Romney: "Get Your Own Slogan"

Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney has begun slinging a new campaign slogan: "Clear eyes and full hearts--and America can't lose!" --a variation on the tv show Friday Night Lights' "Clear eyes, full hearts, can't lose." The show's Peter Berg has slung back, with a sharply worded letter the Hollywood Reporter has made available here.

Says Mr. Berg in part,

Your use of the phrase falsely and inappropriately associates "Friday Night Lights" with the Romney/Ryan campaign. Mitt, we all wish you and your family the best. We are grateful for your support of our beloved show, but we are not in any way affiliated with you or your campaign. Please come up with your own campaign slogan.

 

Freedom of the Press

Andras Koltay, Peter Pazmany Catholic University, has published The Meaning of Freedom of the Press. Here is the abstract.

The fundamental right to the freedom of the press has frequently been relied upon, not only by legal professionals, but also in discourses involving any public figure. Defenders of the freedom of the press tend to construe this right as a set of obligations for the government (regulation) to stay away from certain matters. I shall present arguments in the following parts to support another interpretation, under which freedom of the press is a more complex right covering various important values, in addition to the undisturbed operation of journalists, editors, and media outlets. In the following section, I discuss the philosophical foundations of this fundamental right, hence references to specific legal or constitutional provisions will be rare.

 

Download the paper from SSRN at the link.

Internet Gaming and Public Policy

Keith C. Miller, Drake University Law School, has published Public Policy and the Inevitability of Internet Gambling in volume 60 of Drake Law Review Discourse (2012). Here is the abstract.

The gaming industry is at a crossroads in the United States. The spectacular Las Vegas-style casinos that have dominated the scene for the last 50 or so years are being challenged by technology and the preferences of a new generation of gamblers. Internet-based gambling has developed at such a rapid pace that the question now seems to be not whether Internet gambling will expand, but when and how. Prominent among the questions presented by this development is whether the regulatory structure for Internet gambling should have its locus in the federal government, or should be left to individual states. As politically charged as this issue is, it assumes that because Internet gambling is (apparently) inevitable, no other justification or rationale for its legalization and regulation is needed. Yet, like all forms of gambling, Internet gambling has costs that need to be balanced against the benefits of its adoption. This article looks at one state, Iowa, where legislation to legalize Internet poker has been and will again be considered. Proponents of Internet gambling in Iowa have not offered persuasive reasons for why this form of gambling is in the best interests of the state. Ultimately, Internet gambling can be justified only by the revenue it may generate. But until there is a clear articulation of the potential financial benefits, and the societal risks, of Internet gambling, Iowans will be unable to make an informed judgment whether it should be legalized and regulated. The Iowa narrative is one that informs the ongoing national debate about Internet gambling.

Download the article from SSRN at the link.

On A&E, Louisiana's Duck Dynasty

More here from the New York Times.

YouTube News

From the Hollywood Reporter: Sarah Silverman and others announce new YouTube channels and content here. In addition, more than sixty (yup, 60) new channels will make their debuts on YouTube. New YouTube partners include Endemol and the BBC. More info here.