Communication Law in America (Electronic book text)

Updated with fresh examples throughout, the extensively illustrated third edition of Paul Siegel's Communication Law in America is a comprehensive, easy-to-follow overview of the complicated ways in which U.S. law determines who may say what to (and about) whom. Beginning with a clear explanation of the structure and history of the U.S. legal system, Siegel looks at how and why this country has come to place value on the freedom of speech, perhaps above other, sometimes-competing freedoms. He covers the key legal concerns affecting media today, including First Amendment principles, common laws, constitutional considerations, libel laws, invasion of privacy, copyright and trademark, access to government information, covering the judiciary, protecting newssources, advertising, sexual messages and obscenity laws, broadcast regulations, the Internet, and more.