CMLP received an email from a novelist asking us how far she can take the advice, "write what you know." Would she risk being sued for libel if she based a character in her fictional work on a person she knows and dislikes in real life? Could she be held accountable if her fictional work were actually semi-autobiographical and described not only her own real-life actions, but also those taken by others?

We're pleased to announce that the Citizen Media Law Project at Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet & Society and the Center for Sustainable Journalism at Kennesaw State University are co‐hosting a conference on September 25, 2010 entitled "Media Law in the Digital Age: The Rules Ha

The Federal Trade Commission has reached a second settlement with a marketer over apparent violations of the Commission's rules requiring disclosure of compensated endorsements, particularly on blogs and social media, as well as other contexts in which the compensation (which may include free samples or discounts) is not "reasonably expected by the audience."

I recall a Twilight Zone episode with a great twist: a man, in order to win a bet that he could stay quiet for an entire year, has had his vocal cords severed. The idea being, it is particularly gruesome to imagine a human being rendered mute for money.

I love reading Shel Silverstein’s The Giving Tree, but it always makes me a little bit sad. Commenting on need, devotion, and mortality, the story revolves around a tree that gives up everything to please a boy. I’ve always kept my eye out for a similar book.

"Man goes to doctor. Says he's depressed. Says life seems harsh and cruel. Says he feels all alone in a threatening world where what lies ahead is vague and uncertain. Doctor says 'Treatment is simple. Great clown Pagliacci is in town tonight. Go and see him. That should pick you up.' Man bursts into tears. Says 'But, doctor...I am Pagliacci.'" - Rorchach's Journal, Oct.