Tag Archives | Scholarship

Ph.D. Grad to Publish Shield Law Research

By on June 28, 2011 in Journalism

Dean Smith, who received his Ph.D. in the UNC School of Journalism and Mass Communication in May 2011, has had an article accepted for publication in the “Journal of Media Law and Ethics” this summer. The article is “Journalist Privilege in 1929: The Quest for a Federal Shield Law Begins.”

In his article, Smith uses a critical legal history approach to explore the first attempts to persuade Congress to adopt a federal shield law and explains the lasting impact of those events. This is the first scholarly treatment of the events, and the article incorporates original historical research. The theoretical lens through which the events are viewed is borrowed from Michael Gerhardt, a well-known constitutional-law scholar on the faculty of the UNC School of Law.  The article is based on Smith’s dissertation research.

Smith is an adjunct professor in the UNC School of Journalism and Mass Communication.  He teaches media law and newswriting.

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Research prizes and presentations

By on February 28, 2011 in Journalism

Six UNC School of Journalism and Mass Communication graduate students and one faculty member have had media law research papers accepted for presentation at the Southeast Colloquium for the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication in Columbia, S.C., March 17-19, 2011.  Among their papers are the first and second-place prize winners in the student paper competition.

These are the authors and the titles of their papers:

  • Jonathan D. Jones (M.A./J.D. dual-degree student), top student paper, “Personal Jurisdiction and Internet Libel:  Why the First Amendment Should Have a Role in the Decision to Exercise Jurisdiction.”
  • Roxanne Coche (Ph.D. student), second-place student paper, “Blurring and Tarnishment:  How Federal Court Have Applied the 2006 Trademark Dilution Revision Act Standards.”
  • Scott Parrott (Ph.D. student), “Does ‘Free Press’ Mean It’s Free to Use?  Fair Use and the Unauthorized Reproduction of News Content Online.”
  • Gillian Wheat (master’s student), “Retransmission Consent:  An Exploration of its Past, Present and Future.”
  • Lydia E. Wilson (master’s student), “Felony Use of an Audio-Enabled Video Phone or Political Speech?  All-party Consent Anti-Wiretapping Statutes and the Public’s Right to Monitor Police Work.”
  • Stephanie Soucheray-Grell (master’s student), “The Drug-Maker and the Doctor:  Recent FDA Warning Letters and Direct-to-Professional Promotional Speech.”
  • Debashis “Deb” Aikat, associate professor, with Nikhil Moro of the University of North Texas, “Adjudicating Libel:  Freedom of Expression Theory in the Digital Age.”

Congratulations, everyone!

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FCC v. Fox Television Stations and a Call for Protecting Emotive Speech

By on February 19, 2010 in FCC, First Amendment

Wat Hopkins, Park Distinguished Visiting Professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication, presented his research at the Mary Junck Research Colloquium. Dr. Hopkins discussed the Supreme Court’s recent treatment of non-traditional language and the appropriate level of protection for the emotive, as well as the cognitive, element of speech. The presentation focused on the justices’ attempt in FCC v. Fox Television Stations to define the f-word and then determine whether, when used as a fleeting expletive rather than repeatedly, the word is indecent for broadcast purposes. Dr. Hopkins, a professor of communication at Virginia Tech, has published three books and a number of articles on free speech topics. The presentation was co-sponsored by the UNC Center for Media Law & Policy.

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Cyberspeech Symposium

By on February 20, 2009 in First Amendment, Internet

Paul Jones, UNC clinical associate professor and director of ibiblio, was the keynote speaker for The First Amendment Law Review’s annual symposium at the School of Law. Co-sponsored by the UNC Center for Media Law and Policy, the 2009 symposium focused on Cyberspeech and featured prominent scholars and experts from around the country.

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