POL 102 Lecture Notes - Lecture 18: The New York Weekly Journal, Seditious Libel, Pentagon Papers
2 May 2018
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POL 102
Lecture 18
The Media
● What are the mass media?
○ Media is plural
○ Geerall e ea the es edia
■ Editorial content vs. news content
■ Traditional media vs. new media
○ The media as a necessary check on government
○ What does the media do?
■ Inform
■ Investigate
● Functions of the News Media
○ To inform - surveillance
○ To investigate - the public watchdog
○ To interpret - eplai strateg, do’t fall for spi
■ Selection of news - interpreting what is more or less important
■ Commentary and opinion - has taken greater significance in the past few
decades 2012: 85% of news on MSNBC was commentary and opinion
● The Fourth Estate
○ The media as check on government
○ 1st Amendment - during times/threat of war, national security converns may require
that a press not publish a story
○ Near v. Minnesota: state stopped a newspaper from publishing controversial claims
about the mayor of Minneapolis, convicted the publisher -> SC overruled, prior restraint
only possible in exceptionally rare cases
○ Pentagon Papers case – classified documents on Viet Nam published in NYT -> Nixon
administration secured a court injunction forcing NYT to cease publication -> SC said it
was OK
○ NYT v. Sullivan – advertisement placed in NYT in support of MLK, Alabama law requires
ALL particulars to be true if damaging statements are found, SC disagreed and required
proof of actual malice to convict libel. Means that it has to be published although info is
knowingly false or with reckless disregard of whether it was false
● Media Eras
○ Colonial (1620-1750)
■ Zenger case and seditious libel
● Zenger was jailed for criticizing the colonial governor of NY in his New
York Weekly journal, pledged guilty but argued that the statements
ere true → ourts aepted, free press ore iportat tha seditious
libel (language that incites rebellion against the authority of the state)
■ Right to criticize government not widely accepted
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
The media as a necessary check on government. To interpret - e(cid:454)plai(cid:374) strateg(cid:455), do(cid:374)"t fall for spi(cid:374) Selection of news - interpreting what is more or less important. Commentary and opinion - has taken greater significance in the past few decades 2012: 85% of news on msnbc was commentary and opinion. 1st amendment - during times/threat of war, national security converns may require that a press not publish a story. Near v. minnesota: state stopped a newspaper from publishing controversial claims about the mayor of minneapolis, convicted the publisher -> sc overruled, prior restraint only possible in exceptionally rare cases. Pentagon papers case classified documents on viet nam published in nyt -> nixon administration secured a court injunction forcing nyt to cease publication -> sc said it was ok. Nyt v. sullivan advertisement placed in nyt in support of mlk, alabama law requires.
