firstamendment

California First Amendment Coalition to Tell Congressional Commission that China’s Internet Censorship Violates WTO Treaties CFAC, June 16, 2008–The California First Amendment Coalition (CFAC) will testify before a Congressional commission this week concerning the Chinese government’s system of internet censorship, which CFAC is challenging as a violation of free trade treaties enforced by the World Trade Organization (WTO). The hearings on “Access to Information and Media Control in the People’s Republic of China” are being

Will All Judges Who Have Viewed Porn Please Stand Up? By Peter Scheer As the whole world now knows, federal appeals court judge Alex Kozinski has looked at pornography and has stored some pornographic files on a personal, nonpublic website. This revelation, and the invasion of privacy that it entails, are apparently justified by the fact that Kozinski is currently presiding, as a temporary trial judge, over a high-profile obscenity prosecution in Los Angeles. Judge

Firestorm started by Vietnamese newspaper shows both owners and demonstrators in need of free speech remedial training By Peter Scheer All newspapers from time to time should publish articles that give offense to a sizable segment of their readers. Such provocations–challenging readers to think differently about an issue–are part of the editorial independence that is the right and obligation of all credible news organizations. Subscriber response may range, depending on the gravity of the offense,

Vallejo’s bankruptcy highlights need for transparency in city-union contracts By Peter Scheer The city of Vallejo has taken the extraordinary step of filing for federal bankruptcy protection. While the financial distress of this San Francisco suburb (population 117,000) is especially acute, its fiscal problems are fundamentally the same as those facing many California cities and counties–and, indeed, the state itself. To the familiar litany of causes–falling sales tax revenue, the home mortgage crisis leading to