Welcome to the Citizen Media Law Brief, a weekly newsletter highlighting recent blog posts, media law news, legal threat entries, and other new content on the Citizen Media Law Project's website. You are receiving this email because you have expressed interest in the CMLP or registered on our site, www.citmedialaw.org. If you do not wish to receive this newsletter, you can unsubscribe by following the link at the bottom of this email or by going to http://www.citmedialaw.org/newsletter/subscriptions.
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The latest from the Citizen Media Law Project blog...
Sam Bayard reports on a recent development in the "cyberlaw" trademark controversy.
Eric Menhart Rethinks Trademark Application; Internet Lawyers Still Laughing
David Ardia looks at Pennsylvania's new open records law.
Pennsylvania Reforms Open Records Law, Loses Distinction as Worst in the Country
David Ardia evaluates the First Amendment considerations in the Wikileaks case.
Making Sense of the Wikileaks Fiasco: Prior Restraints in the Internet Age
Sam Bayard discusses Olympic athletes' blogging constraints.
International Olympic Committee Thinks Blogging Is Not About Journalism
David Ardia reports on a court's order to shut down the Wikileaks website.
Court Orders Wikileaks.org Shutdown, Then Grants Limited Reprieve?
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Other citizen media law news...
A New Weapon for Courts Against Silent Journos?
WSJ Law Blog - Thurs. 02/21/08
Former Lord Chancellor wants retroactive UK web censorship
Ars Technica - Thurs. 02/21/08
New York Times - Wed. 02/20/08
Bills targeting incidents reports still alive
SunHerald.com - Wed. 02/20/08
Blogger Spurs Debate Over Shield Law
SPJ Legal Defense Fund Blog - Tues. 02/19/08
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Recent threats added to the CMLP database...
ABC v. Spocko
Posted February 22nd, 2008
Geller v. Sapient (Letter)
Posted February 22nd, 2008
Hilton v. Persa
Posted February 21st, 2008
Whitney Information Network v. Xcentric Ventures
Posted February 18th, 2008
Julius Baer Bank and Trust v. Wikileaks
Posted February 18th, 2008
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The full(er) Brief...
"The curtain appears to be closing on a what has been a humorous episode in the anals of 'cyberlaw.' Ron Coleman and Eric Goldman report that Eric Menhart has amended his application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, which previously sought to trademark the term 'CyberLaw' in connection with legal services.
Menhart is no longer seeking ownership of the (almost certainly
generic) term 'Cyberlaw' itself, opting instead for registration of his
firm's stylized logo."
Sam Bayard, Eric Menhart Rethinks Trademark Application; Internet Lawyers Still Laughing
"Last week, Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell signed a bill that significantly reforms the state's open records law, previously regarded as one of the worst in the country. . . . Under the new law, all records are presumed open, unless explicitly included on a list of exceptions. The law also shifts the burden to the government to prove why a record should remain private. Under the old version, the responsibility fell to citizens to show why they should be given information."
David Ardia, Pennsylvania Reforms Open Records Law, Loses Distinction as Worst in the Country
"Yesterday, I reported that a federal judge in San Francisco had issued a stunningly broad injunction that brought down Wikileaks.org, a site that is developing what it describes as an 'uncensorable Wikipedia for untraceable mass document leaking and analysis.' (I'll let the prescience of that statement sink in on its own.) . . . [However] neither the banks nor the judge were able to effectively cutoff access to the documents at issue. While Wikileaks' U.S.-hosted site is still in limbo, users can access the material through its many mirror sites, including wikileaks.be, wikileaks.org.uk, wikileaks.cx, and wikileaks.in. . . . So much for the best laid plans."
David Ardia, Making Sense of the Wikileaks Fiasco: Prior Restraints in the Internet Age
"Ars Technica reports that the International Olympic Committee has lifted its ban on blogging. Athletes competing in Beijing 2008 will be allowed to blog about the Olympics, so long as they follow some, well, restrictive guidelines. Most notably, athletes will not be permitted to report on the overall competition or relay information from third parties; instead, the guidelines require that they focus on their own personal experiences. This is because, in the IOC's view, blogging is 'a legitimate form of personal expression and not a form of journalism.' Whew, I'm glad they resolved that tricky ontological question."
Sam Bayard, International Olympic Committee Thinks Blogging Is Not About Journalism
"Last Friday, a federal district court judge in San Francisco issued a stunningly broad injunction that brought down Wikileaks, a site that is developing what it describes as an 'uncensorable Wikipedia for untraceable mass document leaking and analysis.' The case was initiated earlier in the week by Julius Baer Bank and Trust Company, a Cayman Islands banking entity, which along with its Swiss parent company filed an ex parte application for a temporary restraining order seeking to enjoin Wikileaks from publishing or distributing copies of documents the plaintiffs claim contain 'stolen or otherwise wrongfully obtained confidential and protected bank files and records.'"
David Ardia, Court Orders Wikileaks.org Shutdown, Then Grants Limited Reprieve?
