First Amendment News

San Luis Obispo county supervisors are putting time limits on a group of activists to give other citizens a chance to address the board. Time limits are permissible under the Brown Act so long as no citizen is singled out for exclusion. -DB San Luis Obispo Tribune April 17, 2009 By Bob Cuddy County supervisors verbally spanked some Los Osos activists during a terse exchange this week, after the Los Osans lectured the board for

A publishers association lawyer said that the Porterville City council violated the Brown Act by failing to indicate in their meeting agenda that they were going to act on a bailout for the Fourth of July fireworks show. -DB The Porterville Recorder April 15, 2009 By Glenn Faison The Porterville City Council broke the law April 7 when it voted to bail out the Exchange Club’s Fourth of July fireworks show with a $13,000 infusion

European nations are reaping open government benefits as the European Court of Human Rights moves towards recognizing access to information as a basic human right in democratic societies. -DB Access Info Europe News Release April 14, 2009 MADRID – The European Court of Human Rights ruled that public bodies’ refusal to disclose information needed for public debate violates the right to freedom of expression and information. In this case the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union asked

Citizen Media Law Project reporter Michael Lindenberger argues that in its dispute with the Web giants, AP should examine the quality of its content and look for ways short of legal action to gain fair value for its news. –DB Citizen Media Law Project April 7, 2009 By Michael Lindenberger Commentary The Associated Press has announced that it is willing to fight over the question of who owns the content its member newspapers produce, even

An American Iranian journalist who has lived In Iran for six years was charged with espionage after being held for two months for practicing journalism without a press card. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has asked Iran’s government for help in resolving the issue. –DB The Washington Post April 9, 2000 By Thomas Erdbrink Washington Post Foreign Service TEHRAN – Roxana Saberi, an American freelance journalist who has been in custody in Iran since January,