First Amendment

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
---The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution

1. Which of the following is not a right protected by the First Amendment?
a. Assembly.
b. Petition.
c. Privacy.
d. Religion.
e. Press.
f. Speech.

2. Do Americans have the right to burn the flag as a means of political protest?

3. Does the government have the right to restrict indecent material on the Internet?

4. Does someone have the legal right to shout fire in a crowded arena as a prank?

5. Do federal courts have the right to send reporters to jail for refusing to reveal a news source?

6. Are there some student groups that schools may exclude?

7. Is it constitutional to teach about religion in a public school?

8. Do public school students have to salute the flag during a recitation of the pledge of allegiance?

9. Is it the Supreme Court and not Congress that determines what rights are protected by the First Amendment?

10. In America, does the media need to get permission from the government before it publishes controversial articles?

Would you publish this story in your college newspaper and why? Could this story get you into trouble with libel and why or why not?

A sophomore at Springfield University claims a chemistry professor has sexually harassed her.
Cindy Watring, 146 Columbus Hall, says the professor, David Moore, has touched her during tutoring sessions in his office and has invited her to his apartment several times. She said she declined his invitations.
''I am having trouble in his class, and I have to go see him to get help with my papers and projects,'' she said. ''But I am scared to go in his office now.''
Moore denied having any improper contact with the student and threatened this newspaper with a libel suit if it published the story.
Watring said she is thinking of filing a formal complaint with the university. ''I don't know how to do that,'' she said. ''I just don't know what to do.''

Libel-Media Law/First Amendment Study Guide

Be familiar with the definition of libel and how libel differs for private citizens versus celebrities.

What has to occur for libel to take place: identification, defamation and publication. Understand the definition of these three ingredients.

Understand the concept of “actual malice” and why celebrities need to prove it in order to win a libel suit.

Know the details of New York Times Vs. Sullivan, the Supreme Court case that established the concept of “actual malice.”

Know the difference between libel per se and libel per quod and examples of each of these forms of libel.

Know what constitutes bad taste, breach of contract, fabrication and contempt of court.

What are the defenses for libel: truth, retractions, an apology in print?

What are shield laws.

Be familiar with common ethical problems that reporters face such as freebies, unnamed sources, etc.

Know the definition of the First Amendment and be familiar with the rights it guarantees regarding speech, petition and the press.

How are the courts interpreting libel when it comes to digital media such as the internet.

Know the differences between libel and slander.

Know the role of the courts in relation to the First Amendment.

What are some of the restrictions on the rights guaranteed by the First Amendment?

Editorial assignment

Directions: Chose ONE of the following topics to write an editorial. The editorial should be written in the proper style, be persuasive with supporting facts and should end with a recommendation of what readers can do if they agree with your editorial. Your editorial should be at least 200 words.  Your editorial should convince the reader of your paper that your newspaper’s position is the correct one. You should use the Internet to research news stories on your topic before writing the editorial.

Assignment:You are the editor of a college newspaper in the South. The editorial board directs you to write an editorial on the 150^th anniversary of the start of the Civil War this week. The editorial should address the lessons that have been learned from the civil war and how the civil war should be remembered today.

Assignment: You are the editor of a college newspaper in Arizona. The editorial board directs you to write an editorial about the new Arizona law that makes it legal for students to carry firearms on campus as long as they do not take them into buildings. The editorial board is letting you decide whether this is a good or a bad idea.

Assignment: You are the editor of the Rutgers college newspaper. The editorial staff decides to editorialize on the issue of Snooki being paid $32,000 to speak at the college. You are assigned to write the editorial and the staff leaves it up to you as to what editorial position to take on the issue. Write an editorial that you would under those circumstances. Write a strong persuasive editorial in the correct editorial style .

Snookinomics: Profits From a Tan

By CATHERINE RAMPELL

Published: April 8, 2011

THIS week, media outlets everywhere mocked Rutgers for paying Nicole (Snooki) Polizzi $32,000 to talk about drinking and tanning on March 31. That was $2,000 more than what the Nobel laureate Toni Morrison will receive for the school’s commencement speech next month.

How could a pint-size, poufed party girl possibly be worth so much?

Turns out, that’s the going rate for Ms. Polizzi, though her house-raising presence is more typically sought by nightclubs and bars, rather than places of higher learning.

For her club appearances, Snooki can receive $25,000 for a couple of hours of drinking and dancing, according to her managers. Below is a back-of-the-envelope estimate showing how she may be worth more. Most figures are from Alex Cordova, a marketing executive for Angel Management Group, which runs the LAX in Las Vegas, which recently hired Snooki for a spring-break party.

TABLE SERVICE LAX has 60 tables. In exchange for table service, patrons must commit to a minimum bottle service.

On a typical Saturday night, that cost would be $1,000 to $5,000, depending on location and size of the table. On a celebrity night, the prices of tables double, with those closest to the star going for the highest amount. Mr. Cordova declined to specify exact prices.

Using a conservative estimate, let’s say that on a non-Snooki night, 58 of 60 tables sell for $1,000, and two tables for $5,000. So on Snooki’s night, the club gets, at minimum, an extra ($1,000 x 58) + ($5,000 x 2) = $68,000 in table service.

COVER CHARGES LAX can expect 1,600 to 1,800 patrons on a typical Saturday night in March. With a buzzworthy celebrity, attendance goes up to 1,900 to 2,200 customers, Mr. Cordova estimates.

Guests who purchase tables don’t pay a cover charge. With 60 tables with 10 people each, 600 people wouldn’t pay covers. That means the remaining guests, called G.A. for “general admission,” number about 1,100 on a noncelebrity night, and 1,450 on a celebrity night.

The entrance fee is $20 for women and $30 for men. Not everyone pays: bouncers let many in free. On a noncelebrity night, about 60 percent of G.A.’s pay the cover. On a celebrity night, when demand is higher, Mr. Cordova estimates that 80 percent pay.

For simplicity’s sake, let’s assume that an even share of men and women attend and are allowed in free. So for a noncelebrity night, the club gets $16,500 in cover charges (60 percent of 550 men paying $30, plus 60 percent of 550 women paying $20).

And on a celebrity night, the club gets $29,000 in cover charges (80 percent of 725 men paying $30, plus 80 percent of 725 women paying $20).

So the total in extra cover charges is $12,500.

BAR SERVICE G.A.’s buy drinks at the bar. Let’s assume that the average Las Vegas clubber buys four drinks, at about $12 each. That’s a bar tab of $48.

So on a noncelebrity night, with 1,100 guests who haven’t bought tables, that would total $52,800 (1,100 x $48).

On a celebrity night, with 2,050 non-table-buyers, bar service totals $98,400 (2,050 x $48).

So the additional, Snooki-derived bar revenues would be $45,600.

MEDIA EXPOSURE The previous figures are tallied the same night that Snooki slinks down LAX’s center staircase. But the real return comes later, when patrons upload photos with Snooki onto Facebook, or when a portrait of her partying at LAX runs in UsWeekly.

And to ensure maximum exposure for the clubs, stars like Snooki usually sign an agreement that prevents them from partying at any nearby clubs, said Lori Levine, founder of Flying Television, a celebrity booking firm.

According to Cision, a company that tracks media coverage, the Snooki appearance generated 95 mentions in the mainstream media, plus hundreds of mentions on blogs, Facebook and Twitter. The company estimated the publicity value at $133,306.

THE VERDICT By this rough accounting, Snooki’s $25,000 fee brought in an additional $259,406 in revenue for LAX.

Of course, a university like Rutgers doesn’t have the same profit motives as a nightclub.

Still, schools get other benefits from steep speaker fees. Rutgers officials say that celebrity appearances have boosted the university’s brand, as well as student morale.

Indeed, students were so excited about Snooki that the school had to add a second standing-room-only show. And the finger-wagging controversy generated headlines around the world, raising the school’s visibility.

“A large part of what brings students to a school is not just the academics, but what you can offer outside of the classroom,” said Ana Castillo, a senior and president of the Rutgers University Programming Association, the student group that arranged Snooki’s lecture.

“We have to show applicants what kinds of fun we have,” she added, “to show that students here aren’t dying from just reading books 24 hours a day.”

Crime story lead

Write a lead for your afternoon newspaper based on the following information that you get from the police that morning:

It's Thursday morning in Springfield. Local police say they found a body in a downtown alley, and they've identified the victim as Stormy Snowe, the popular weather forecaster on WUGH, Channel 2. Police say that Snowe's ex-boyfriend, Hagar Samuels, has confessed to hitting her with a crowbar after stalking her last night and watching her kiss another man.

Crime story

A South Bay teen with a history of traffic offenses has been arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence after her car allegedly plowed into a group of Torrance cyclists, critically injuring one, according to the Daily Breeze.

A car driven by Jaclyn Andrea Garcia, 19, swerved into a group of about a dozen cyclists who were making their way south on a residential street around 7:15 a.m. Sunday, the Daily Breeze reported.

Two of the bikers were injured, one of them critically. That biker, South Bay resident Adam Rybicki, 49, was taken to County Harbor-UCLA Medical Center. He suffered several broken bones and was in a coma.

State Department of Motor Vehicle records show Garcia, who has a valid driver’s license, has been convicted of four driving offenses since 2009.

In 2009, she was convicted of driving at an unsafe speed for prevailing conditions, speeding and a U-turn violation, according to DMV records. On Jan. 25, she was again convicted after receiving another speeding ticket, according to DMV records.

Police arrested Garcia on suspicion of driving under the influence, and she was released from a Torrance jail Sunday, the Breeze reported.

Obit examples

The trip was supposed to be filled with laughter, snow and brotherly bonding.

Instead, a San Jose family is mourning Philip Walker, remembering him as fun-loving spirit who died snowboarding, one of the many outdoor activities the adventurous 22-year-old loved to do.

"He was so excited to take his younger brother on this trip," said Walker's father, Steve. "He had been planning it for a couple of weeks."

Walker, a Santa Teresa High School graduate best known for being a larger-than-life force on the water polo team, was snowboarding with his brother, Benjamin, 19, near the Sierra at Tahoe Resort over the weekend.

El Dorado County sheriff's authorities said Walker crashed into a tree Saturday on the Upper Powderhorn Trail and tumbled several feet down a hole in the snow. He was buried by a small avalanche and his body was discovered by a rescue team Sunday.

Steve Walker said his son had been wearing a helmet.

Lt. Bryan Golmitz added that Philip Walker was found on a defined course, and said that even experienced skiers and snowboarders can fall into these "tree wells."

It can be terrifying, Golmitz said, when the person in the hole sees glimmers of people whizzing by with no idea that someone, like Walker, might be trapped below.

The coroner is expected to determine whether Walker died because he struck the tree, or because he was under a snowpack in frigid temperatures.

"When someone comes up here to go out and have a good time, there's always inherent danger. This was one of those tragic ones," Golmitz said.

Holding out hope

The two brothers and a family friend left for South Lake Tahoe on Friday and hit the slopes early Saturday. Philip Walker arranged the hotel himself and really wanted to show his younger brother a good time, said his mother, Diane Walker.

The three young men began the day enjoying the snow. Then, about 12:30 p.m., Benjamin Walker and the friend snowboarded down the mountain. They waited at the bottom for Philip and later went to the resort's infirmary to see if he was there. At about 4:45 p.m., they called for help.

Steve Walker said about 100 rescuers helped to look for his son in treacherous weather, scouring the mountain, with helpers on the ground providing logistical support.

For hours, Walker's family held onto the chance that Philip had gotten lost.

"I was hoping he would just come back," Benjamin Walker said. "I was trying to keep my head up."

Then, just before lunch on Sunday, the Walker family received the grim news. One of the searchers noticed a dent in a tree and dug Walker's body from the snow.

This Saturday, his family will hold a church service for him, which is likely to overflow with mourners who will want to pay tribute to the entire Walker clan -- an upstanding Christian family, said longtime friend Greg Trapp, an elder at Evergreen Valley Church who used to coach Walker's water polo team.

"He lived his Christian values," Trapp said of Philip Walker. "He was a practical joker. But it was always fun and enjoyable."

'Living it up'

Walker's family and friends all say the young man had a zest for life.

They think of a zany guy who dressed in mismatched socks and who once sported a Speedo bathing suit when he and his high school water polo team held a car wash fundraiser.

"He was just a great, great, great guy," said Tyler Callaway, 21, who grew up playing Evergreen Little League with Walker. "He loved the outdoors, and living it up."

Callaway ticked off the activities his friend loved to do: baseball, riding BMX bikes, golfing, fishing for trout and bass in the ponds on Grant Ranch near Mount Hamilton, swimming and playing water polo. Walker had been captain of the team when he was a senior.

Walker had taken some classes at West Valley College, but told his parents he wasn't interested in being "book smart" and instead wanted to "live life," his mother recalled. Diane and Steve Walker said they supported their son in his decision but told him he had to learn a trade.

Philip Walker worked at a bicycle shop and most recently was an auto technician at Wheel Works.

In addition to his younger brother, Philip Walker is survived by sisters Danielle, 25, and Kristin, 19, who is Benjamin's twin.

The Walker family was struck by another tragedy in 2006, when nephew Robert Conway and his girlfriend, Mary Bernstein, both 20, died in a San Jose crash caused by a diabetic driver.

Amid his grief over his brother's death, Benjamin Walker said he thought about shelving his snowboard equipment. But he quickly dismissed that thought.

"We shared that connection," he said. "I think my brother would actually be mad at me if I stopped snowboarding."

Obit examples

Elizabeth Taylor, the glamorous queen of American movie stardom, whose achievements as an actress were often overshadowed by her rapturous looks and real-life dramas, has died. She was 79.

Hospitalized six weeks ago for congestive heart failure, Taylor died early Wednesday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles with her four children at her side, publicist Sally Morrison said.

Tributes flowed from luminaries such as Elton John, who extolled her as "a Hollywood giant," and former President Clinton, who honored her at the White House in 2001 and called her "thoroughly American royalty."

During a career that spanned six decades, the legendary beauty with lavender eyes won two Oscars and made more than 50 films, performing alongside such fabled leading men as Spencer Tracy, Montgomery Clift, Marlon Brando and Richard Burton, whom she married twice. She took her cues from a Who's Who of directors, including George Cukor, Joseph L. Mankiewicz, George Stevens, Vincente Minnelli and Mike Nichols.

Long after she faded from the screen, she remained a mesmerizing figure, blessed and cursed by the extraordinary celebrity that molded her life through its many phases: She was a child star who bloomed gracefully into an ingenue; a femme fatale on the screen and in life; a canny peddler of high-priced perfume; a pioneering activist in the fight against AIDS.

Some actresses, such as Katharine Hepburn and Ingrid Bergman, won more awards and critical plaudits, but none matched Taylor's hold on the collective imagination. In the public's mind, she was the dark goddess for whom playing Cleopatra as she did with such notoriety, required no great leap from reality.

Taylor, New York Times critic Vincent Canby once wrote, "has grown up in the full view of a voracious public for whom the triumphs and disasters of her personal life have automatically become extensions of her screen performances. She's different from the rest of us."

Her passions were legend. She loved to eat, which led to well-publicized battles with weight over the years. She loved men, dating many of the world's richest and most famous, including Frank Sinatra, Henry Kissinger and Malcolm Forbes, and married eight times, including the two visits to the altar with Burton.

She loved jewels, amassing huge and expensive baubles the way children collect toys.

"It would be very glamorous to be reincarnated as a big ring on Elizabeth Taylor's finger," Andy Warhol once mused about the woman who owned the 33-carat Krupp diamond ring — a gift from Burton that she wore daily. It broadcast to the world that she was a lady with an enormous lust for life.

But Taylor attracted misfortune too. According to one chronicler, she suffered more than 70 illnesses, injuries and accidents requiring hospitalization, including an appendectomy, an emergency tracheotomy, a punctured esophagus, a hysterectomy, dysentery, an ulcerated eye, smashed spinal discs, phlebitis, skin cancer and hip replacements. In 1997, she had a benign brain tumor removed. By her own count, she nearly died four times.

Study guide for chapters 5 and 6

Study Guide for Chapters 5-6

Know what’s expected of a reporter covering a beat

How are obituaries handled by newspapers? What’s the difference between obituaries and death notices? What’s the difference between standard news obits and feature obits?

How are accident and disaster stories handled?

What are the guidelines for reporting and writing fire stories?

What is the structure for crime stories? What are the pitfalls and dangers reporters face when covering crime?

What steps should reporters following when covering the courts? What are the differences between misdemeanors, felonies

and civil suits?

What steps are recommended for a reporter covering speeches and meetings?

What does the textbook recommend a reporter do when covering politics or sports?

Be familiar with the 10 different types of features outlined in the textbook. What are the differences between news and feature stories?

Where should reporters look when generating story ideas? Be familiar with the helpful tips for successful feature writing.

Know the different feature story structures.

Be familiar with the tips to follow when writing personality profiles.

What tips should be followed when doing enterprise projects and investigative reporting?

(Don’t know anything about package planning)