Supreme Court decorum was breached last week when a man in the audience stood to denounce the Court’s Citizens United decision and a video of the incident was posted online. The Court does not allow video coverage of its hearings. (The New York Times, February 27, 2014, by Adam Liptak)
The video was posted on YouTube by 99 Rise, a advocacy group for tough finance campaign laws. Citizens admitted to the courtroom are supposed leave all electronic devices outside in storage bins. A spokesperson for 99 Rise said that he saw no reason for banning cameras and said videos of court deliberations could enable the Court to “take more seriously how the public sees and feels about what they are doing…” (The Hill, February 28, 2014, by Mario Trujillo)
Done surreptitiously, the video emerged at a time when there is increasing ferment for the Supreme Court to allow filming of its proceedings. The Supreme Court has shown little enthusiasm for changing its policy, but selected federal trial courts are allowing cameras as an experiment. (Digital Media Law Project, February 28, 2014, by Eric P. Robinson)