donal brown

A Christian ministry is asking the U.S Supreme Court to hear its case against the South Poverty Law Center for designating the ministry as a “hate group.” The ministry claims that Times v. Sullivan enables “reputational terrorism” while escaping the responsibilities under defamation law. (Fox News, December 1, 2021, by Tyler O’Neil) Justice Neil Gorsuch recently expressed his opinion in a dissent that Times v. Sullivan’s actual malice standard was less appropriate today given the

The U.S. Department of Justice is asking the 10th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals to establish the right of citizens to record police performing their duties. The department uses videos taken by the public to investigate police misconduct. (The Gazette, November 25, 2021, by Michael Karlik) A number of cases exist upholding the right, but there is no nationwide protection. The DOJ filed a brief in a case before the 10th Circuit involving a man

Virginia protesters of the George Floyd murder by a Minneapolis police officer settled their lawsuit against Fredericksburg and Stafford County for violating their right to free speech and assembly. Police used tear gas and sting-ball grenades against protesters. (The Free Lance-Star, November 26, 2021, by Taft Coghill) A federal court ruled against a Texas high school football player for his off-campus Snapchat video using racist and profane words. The school suspended him for two games

While since 2004 some 1,800 newspapers shut down, there has been a recent surge in closures owing to the strains of the pandemic with mostly weeklies in small communities ending their coverage. (Poynter, November 20, 2021, by Kristen Hare) Poynter compiled a comprehensive list of layoffs, furloughs and closures during the pandemic. (Poynter, November 30, 2021, by Kristen Hare) The Post published a story with instances of local issues that are under reported or missed.

Buzz Feed won some concessions in its quest for redacted information from the Department of Justice investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. While expressing doubts about the value of the information, U.S. Circuit Judge Karen Henderson said the information could help understand how the Department of Justice interpreted the law and applied it to public facts in failing to find illegal activity in Former President Donald Trump’s dealings with the Russians. Other