Media Law Prof Blog

Using Twitter To Teach Media Law

Jack Lerner, a professor at USC Law School, has a great idea: using Twitter to assist in covering the course content (which is media in the digital age). The Twitter handle is @USCMediaLaw. Check it out.

Oscar Pistorius Documentary Will Air On BBC; No Date Set

The BBC has already jumped on the Oscar Pistorius murder story as a subject for a documentary, barely a week after the death of Reeva Steenkamp. The network has not announced a date for an airing on BBC Three. More here from the Hollywood Reporter.

Nielsen Changing System Of Tracking Viewing

The Nielsen Company is changing the way it defines "TV" viewing to mean not just the traditional box, but also broadband and Xbox viewing, and will eventually add tablets. This expanded definition will capture new kinds of viewing, including streaming, that US viewers have migrated to over the past few years. More here from the Hollywood Reporter.

The Time For Cameras In the SC Courtroom? Not Yet

Tony Mauro of the National Law Journal reports that the newest Supreme Court Justice, Sonia Sotomayor, now seems to have abandoned her willingness to advocate for opening the Court up to the inquiring eye of the media--namely the television camera. She recently told PBS's Charlie Rose that the public might not quite be able to put oral arguments in context because of the "devil's advocate's" nature of the process. Mr. Mauro notes that other Justices have also changed their minds about introducing cameras to the Supreme Court, including Elena Kagan and Samuel Alito. More here.

French Publishers and Google Come To An Agreement

From the New York Times, a discussion of a new deal that French publishers have agreed to with Google, concerning French publishing content (including websites and other digital material). Other European publishers are concerned, since they had wanted to present a united front and pursue legislation that would regulate the questions both of copyright and use of digital content in the EU.

CBS New York Affiliate Anchor Arrested On Domestic Violence Charges

Police arrested Rob Morrison, anchor for WCBS, on "charges of second-degree strangulation, second-degree threatening and disorderly conduct" after incidents at their Connecticut home Sunday night. They said Mr. Morrison assaulted and threated his wife, CBS MoneyWatch reporter Ashley Morrison. More here from CBS News.