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Chapter 14: Media Policy, Law, and Ethics
Terms
Policy: structures regulation Law: binding rules of state Standards: technical issues
Key communications policies
Freedom of speech and the First Amendment– Protecting political speech– Alien and Sedition Act
Limits on the First Amendment
Defamation Fairness Doctrine Obscenity Pacifica decision / Safe harbor Commercial speech: FTC
7 Dirty Words – Miller vs. California
Free speech and the Internet
History of the Communications Decency Act– Time magazine story– Challenged and
overturn of key provisions
– Self-regulation
TV & Film –Violence and the V-Chip MPAA film rating system
– Voluntary, self-regulation
Television ratings
TCA96 V-Chip provision– Parental controls v. State controls– Not much used
The Fourth Amendment and privacy Threats from public sources
– Initial fears of “big brother”
Threats from private sources– May be more significant today– US & European differences
Patent and Copyright law: Protecting intellectual property Ownership issues
– Abuse of market power
– Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890
Ownership and diversity
Diversity of ownership Diversity of content What is the relationship?
Concentration of ownership
Vertical integration Horizontal integration Cross-ownership
Integration
Musicians
Record Label
CD Manufacture
Record Club
Rec. Stores
Authors
Publisher
Printer
Trucking
Bookstores
Actors
Studios
Film/Video Manufacture
Theaters
Video Stores
Music Books Film
Spectrum Management
Frequency allocation Public interest
– Localism– Scarcity argument
ITU Digitization changing scarcity?
Technical Standards
Standards bodies International regulations and standards
– ITU
ICANN– DNS
Company standards– Proprietary Windows– Open Linux
The policymaking process
Federal regulation and policymaking
FCC Department of Commerce
– NTIA
Federal regulation and policymaking, continued FTC Justice The Courts The Congress
State and local regulation
PUCs Municipalities
Lobbies
Political Action Committees– National Association of Broadcasters– MPAA
Internecine Regulation
Industry Capture
Access to Media and Universal Service Basic telecommunications services
– Phone, 911
Which new media deserve universal service requirements?– Internet & TCA96
The Fifth Estate: The media in the policy process Media reporting of the policymaking
process Tracking perceived biases in media
Ethics in communications media
General considerations in individual ethics– Aristotle– Kant– Situation Ethics– JS Mill
Codes of ethics
Ethical issues for media professionals Accuracy of information Responsibility and fairness Confidentiality Source attribution Leaks Privacy
– Linda Tripp