Comm 459 Comm Law
Research Paper
Legal issue research paper: The research paper can explore a topic broadly or focus more specifically on a legal case or cases. Use information from these chapters as a jumping-off point to explore the issue. The paper should include as much recent research as possible, as well as referencing social media policies. NOTE: Topics are open, but you can review the list of many sample topics offered below. Your paper should be around 7-12 pages, plus a complete reference list in APA style. See the attachment for the paper structure and potential topics.
Write a paper containing the following sections:
A. Introduction: State the topic of the paper, explain the importance of the topic, and summarize your conclusion.
B. The Issue: Provide an overview of the various positions taken on the topic. For example, the tobacco industry takes one position on tobacco advertising, and proponents of regulation take the opposite position. In this section, briefly explain both positions.
C. Discussion: THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF THE PAPER. You must sort out the various claims made and decide which claims are important and valid. Or, you may choose that the existing debate needs to include the real issue. After you have sorted out the issue, YOU MUST REACH A CONCLUSION AS TO HOW THE ISSUE MIGHT BE RESOLVED. Should a law be passed? Should the law be changed? PROPOSE A LEGAL SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM.
D. Conclusion: Summarize your discussion and state your conclusion.
Possible research paper topics
Advertising laws
Aereo: Why did the Supreme Court side with broadcasters? What are the issues?
Bloggers and press law; bloggers and libel and slander
Broadcasting–Law and legislation
Cable television–Law and legislation
Censorship of the Internet
Central Radio Company Inc v. City of Norfolk: Can advertising sign codes be used to stifle protest speech? Computer crime
Computers in law enforcement
Confidential communications
Copyright
Copyright infringement borders
Copyright of the Net
Cyberbullying
Cybersquatting
Digital media–Government policy Digital media–Law and legislation
Do biometric technologies violate privacy?
Do face recognition software and technologies violate privacy?
Electronic commerce–Law and legislation
Electronic surveillance
Fair use (Copyright)
First Amendment
Freedom of information
Freedom of speech
Freedom of the press
Free speech in colleges
Free speech in high schools
Government and the press
Government surveillance of communication
Government surveillance of the internet
GPS and Privacy
Hacking and the law
How can privacy be protected in the world of search engines?
Intellectual property
Internet pornography
Internet–Censorship
Internet privacy
Internet and intimidation
Internet–Law and legislation
IT outsourcing
Lane v. Franks, No. 13-483: How does this decision clarify Garcelli v. Ceballos? Should Lane’s job have been reinstated? Libel and slander
Lisa Kirby v. Marvel Characters. Can statutory termination rights be used to reclaim copyright ownership? How is the Supreme Court likely to rule?
Los Angeles Baseball: Why can’t viewers watch the Dodgers on TV? Is Time Warner engaged in anticompetitive activity in the pay-TV market?
Mass media–Law and legislation
McCullen v. Coakley, What are the issues? Marketing–Law and legislation
Monitoring employees’ Web and email use
Motion pictures–Law and legislation
National responsibility regarding digital infrastructure Net Neutrality: What are the issues? What should the FCC do?
Obscenity (law)
Personal data privacy regulation in other countries
Piracy (Copyright)
Political activism on the Net
Press freedom
Press law
Privacy OR confidentiality
Public library internet filtering
Public records–Law and legislation
Public relations–Law and legislation
Radio–Law and Legislation
Should the Court of Appeals have reinstated the jury verdict in “The Nuremburg Files”? What are the issues?
Should the FCC Ownership Rules Be Scrapped? What are the issues of media ownership? Should the FCC Promulgate
social media and harassment/intimidation.
Rules to Regulate the Internet like Telephone Service? Should the FCC eliminate the sports blackout rule? What are the issues? Should the US have national ID cards?
Spam
Spectrum Auctions: Repacking the broadcast spectrum. What are the issues?
The Ferguson Protests. Were police officials unfairly suppressing both lawful demonstrations and reporting by journalists?
What test should be used as the precedent?
Telecommunication policy
Telecommunication–law and legislation
Telecommunications regulation
Television–Law and legislation
The digital commons
United States. Federal Communication Commission
Virtual reality–Law and legislation
Voting on the Net
Wollschlaeger v. Governor of Florida: Are doctors questions to patients speech or treatment?
Some other ideas are broken down by topic:
Supreme Court
“The First Amendment in the Supreme Court in last year’s term”
“First Amendment Cases before SCOTUS in the current term”
“Justice Scalia’s Free Speech Decisions”
“Calls to Televise Supreme Court Hearings”
Free Speech/Prior Restraint
“Prior Restraint and the 2011 British Super Injunction Scandal”
“Indiana’ Free Speech in Indiana
“Is Videotaping Police Officers Protected?”
“License Plate Free Speech”
“Free Speech and College Campuses”
“How is Freedom of the Press distinguished from Freedom of Speech.” Start with an article I have by Eugene Volokh.
“Industry Self regulation under the threat of government regulations: Video games.”
“Industry Self regulation under the threat of government regulations: Comic books”
“Industry Self-regulation under the threat of government regulations: Movies.”
“Industry Self regulation under the threat of government regulations: Cigarette Advertising”
“Industry Self-regulation under the threat of government regulations: Television.”
“The Christian Case for Free Speech”
“The Secular Case for Free Speech”
“Is the Campus of a Private University a Public Forum?”
“William Blackstone’s Influence on Prior Restraint Rule”
“Fiction and First Amendment Law”
Symbolic Speech
“A Comparison of RAV and Virginia v. Black.” How did the court treat the two cross-burning cases differently?
“Comparative Study of Nations’ Flag Protection Laws”
“Headlight Flashing: A Free Speech Issue?”
Student Speech
“The Forum Theory and University Publications”
“Kincaid and Hosty and College Student Publications”
Libel
“The MARR Group: A Case Study of the Largest Libel Verdict in US History.”
“Comparative Study of US and (other nation) Libel Law”
“Randall ‘Tex’ Cobb v. Sports Illustrated and Libel Law”
“States and the libel remedy of Internet removal”
“The State of Libel Law in Indiana
Privacy
Hearst and Turner v. KTRK and discuss the ramifications for media outlets.
“Privacy and the Church: Comparing Guinn v. Collinsville with Penley v. Westbrook”
“Is the Right of Publicity Really a Privacy Tort?”
“The State of Privacy Law in Indiana
Free Press/Fair Trial/Shield Laws
“Texas Judge Ted Poe and PBS Video of Murder Case”
Open Records/Open Meetings/Open Government
“A Study of First Amendment Rights and Crime Scenes”
Copyright/Trademark
“Copyright and the phenomenon of Fan Fiction”
“Disney and the Sonny Bono Copyright Extension Act”
“Use of Trademarks in Movies and Television: Are There Limits?”
“The Saga of SOPA: How the Internet Killed Copyright Legislation?”
“Challenging Copyright: Why Some Argue It’s Time to Tear Down the Walls of Copyright Protection”
Obscenity
“Comparison of the Roth and Miller Obscenity Rules”
“Virtual Child Pornography and the Perils of Regulation”
“Regulation of adult-oriented businesses”
Violence
“When are Media Liable for Damages When Criminal Ideas Come from Media Usage?” Start with Eimann v. Soldier of Fortune; follow all leads that can be detected in this case. Then go to a network case involving a California rape allegedly caused by a movie and the Florida TV intoxication murder case. Follow all leads you can identify from the cases cited in these two cases’ footnotes. Consult Media Law Reporter and LEXIS for cases, LEXIS for law reviews.
Commercial Speech
“Cigarette Advertising and the First Amendment”
“The Saga of Commercial Speech Protection: How Advertising Gained Protected Status”
“Campaign Finance and the First Amendment.”
“Advertising, C.P.A.s, Doctors and Lawyers”
“Pat Boone: His Troubles with Advertising Endorsements”
“Public Relations Practice and the First Amendment”
“The FDA v. the Surgeon General: Brown v. Williamson”
Broadcast Regulation
“The Curious Case of the Fleeting Expletives: FCC v. Fox I and II”
“Comparison of Public Inspection Files of Abilene Radio and TV Stations.” All radio and TV stations are required by FCC regulations to maintain open, public inspection files. Learn from the Communications Act of 1934 and all subsequent FCC regulations (available in Brown Library federal documents section) about current standards for public inspection files. Check children’s programming files. Use LEXIS for law review articles. Visit all Abilene stations and examine files. Write a comparative paper on the findings. “Children and Television Regulation”
“Death of the Scarcity Theory in Broadcast Regulation”
Media Ownership
“The Legal Case for Cross-Ownership in the Same Market”
Religious Freedom
“Hosanna v. Tabor and the New Religious Exception”
“Historical Study of the ‘Wall of Separation’ Idea”
Other Topics
“The Petition for Redress Clause and Its Day in Court”
