This assignment has TWO PARTS!!
Rubrics:
Length: for Parts 1 and 2 together, NO LESS THAN EIGHT (8) double spaced pages, Times New Roman 12 pt font, not counting footnotes (if you choose footnotes) or in text citations or Works Cited page, etc.You should be thorough. You may single space Part 1 to bring it in line with casenote format, which helps you be more thorough with Part 2.
Cases, statutes, etc. must be cited properly; save the works cited page for any outside articles, etc. that you might use.
Do outside legal research as you see fit, especially for Part 2. If you do, refrain from citing Dictionary.com or some other sort of Answer.com site to avoid a loss in points.
You may use bullet points etc., but do so sparingly and with the most impact; this will avoid loss in points. Cite the source if you are summarizing something from that source or case with bullet points, but limit bullet points; this paper should be original. Avoid cutting and pasting from sources; avoid quoting your instructor or Course Content; rather, fold those and Module information into your general knowledge.
Week 6 concepts and cases will guide your success. For Part 2 do not deal with any IP issues or corporate liability issues.
Use proper casenote format for Part 1; it will just be a bit shorter than your CA2. You may single space Part 1
Interweave law and fact for Part 2 and do not just tell me what you think the “law” is–spot the issues and analyze the possibilities.
Include superior structure, proper grammar and tone, style/sentence/paragraph structure. Use third person- Avoid “I” or “Me” unless asked expressly; use “we” or “us” if actively counseling or concluding.
No cover page necessary; for Part 2 do not mimic a fake memo heading (e.g. from, to, etc.)
Remember: In part 1, do not regurgitate court language, and for part 2, do not write a legal dictionary or your opinion.
Part 1:
Do a casenote—a more concise shorter version of what you did for your recent CA 2 and be detailed on the Analysis of the courts holding, reasoning, whether it was groundbreaking, etc. Use whichever of the two formats you are comfortable (see casenote format in instructions to previous assignment, or as prescribed and in the syllabus project description section) of the following case:
Pope v. Illinois.
(You find it, cite it properly—famous case decided in the 1980’s. That’s the only hint you get.)
Part 2:
First–and this is very important—look at the attached artwork.
Second- here’s the hypothetical– As always with hypo’s, this is reality-based but not a real problem. Do not invent material facts or “bring in” other facts from something “real” you perceive. deal with the hypo as is.
You are a paralegal and law clerk at DC Comics’ Los Angeles office, working on clearances and other legal issues relating to media such as film, TV or computer games. One of the in-house attorneys, Liz Goldman at the New York HQ, calls you on company WebEx so she can talk digitally face-to-face (despite the 3 hour time difference) and says:
The artwork (below) is a cover concept for a comic –basically a digital/e-book with accompanying music soundtrack and lines read by actors tracking the dialog in the balloons in each panel (the reader need only tap a panel and the drawn/written dialog and certain sound effects will be audible. This content will to be sold to Kindle and Samsung Galaxy users through Amazon, and iPad/iPhone users through iTunes.
All copyrighted artwork for the project was licensed in a deal last week to TRON Gaming [a made-up name for this assignment, pretend] which is 40% owned by DC’s parent company, Time-Warner. The title of the comic and game will be: “The Dark Knight Gets his Cat” The game, not the animated comic, will carry a mature warning label per the gaming industry’s voluntary agreements from the 1990’s and whatever labeling conventions exist today (research that), in downloadable or tangible retail (i.e. from Game Stop, Best Buy, etc.) form for PS4, XBox, and other platforms.
Liz looks worried on your desktop screen. She says, “The title worries me because the whole thing is rife with that double-entendre. The Cover Art (based on the artwork attached) might be ok, but we have kids trying to buy and download this comic and playing the game.”
She shows you panels from the comic and screen shots of the game. There is indeed nudity, but it is back and side; Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle indeed have sex, and there are panels/segment of them in their customs, but strategically ripped to expose body parts and then sex as Batman and Catwoman. There are depictions of child abuse and undressed children, leering pedophilic gangsters (the plot centers on a vicious ring of international child/sex-slave traffickers headed by the Penguin, and Catwoman decides to help the Batman).
She continues, “Not to mention there’s graphic violence in both. There are bullet-ridden bodies, teeth and noses broken. Blood, blood, blood!”
“In other words,” you interrupt, “how real violence and wounds and fear looks?”
“Yeah, but it all does come back to the sex and language. They use explicit profanity. Then, there’s the double entendre issue with “cat.” I heard a rumor Walmart won’t carry the game. Loosing Wal-Mart would be a big problem. Still, it would be a boon to Game Stop and Best Buy, Target etc.”
You reply, sipping your Southern California triple espresso mocha latte, “I’m sure the bosses here and in Manhattan are worried nonetheless, right?”
“Wrong!” She tells you the editors, producers and artists are gung-ho and approved the launch. They paid big money to artists, game developers and big name Hollywood actors to do voice-overs for the comic. Time-Warner, which through DC owns all the characters outright (unlike Marvel which has licensed them some out to Sony, otherwise they are owned by Disney for film) wants to make a big splash. They—and PS, Xbox, Apple, Amazon—anticipate huge worldwide, not just U.S., sales. “Recall the Japanese have been looking at explicit ‘manga’ cartoons for years. Here in America, fans since the 1960’s, even folks marginally familiar with the characters, have eagerly wanted to see Batman and Catwoman hook up for real! There is a lot of pressure to launch, accordingly, and TRON’s CEO has already been on CNBC (with DC executives), teasing and touting this as one of its new ‘game-changing games for 2016.’”
Then, Liz asks you to prepare a memo, citing cases, statutes (all in proper citation form!) articles etc, to her, interweaving law and fact, and walking her through the potential legal pitfalls and potential issues and defenses etc. –and looking at this artwork and what she’s told you in the worst possible light–associated with going ahead with this digital comic and the game. She is interested in, for example, obscenity, indecency and porn–both generally in digital and print media and specifically with respect to children/minors. She’s heard of the old “Comics Code” but says that’s a minor issue. She’s heard of “pandering” but is not sure it’s an issue. She’s also heard of a case called Pope v. Illinois, and wonders if it applies. Finally, she’s worried about the FCC.
…so, riddle me this Bat-fans–what do you tell her?
