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Brian C. Murchison

Selected Works

First Amendment

Articles 1 - 9 of 9

Full-Text Articles in Law

Speech And The Truth-Seeking Value, Brian C. Murchison Feb 2016

Speech And The Truth-Seeking Value, Brian C. Murchison

Brian C. Murchison

Courts in First Amendment cases long have invoked the truth-seeking value of speech, but they rarely probe its meaning or significance, and some ignore it altogether. As new cases implicate questions of truth and falsity, thorough assessment of the value is needed. This Article fills the gap by making three claims. First, interest in truth-seeking has resurfaced in journalism, politics, philosophy, and fiction, converging on a concept of provisional or “functional” truth. Second, the appeal of functional truth for the law may be that it clarifies thinking about a range of human priorities—survival, progress, and character—without insisting on truth in …


Sullivan's Paradox: The Emergence Of Judicial Standards Of Journalism, Brian C. Murchison Nov 2013

Sullivan's Paradox: The Emergence Of Judicial Standards Of Journalism, Brian C. Murchison

Brian C. Murchison

In this article, the authors examine the development of libel law in America since the Supreme Court's watershed decision in New York Times Co. v. Sullivan and suggest that Sullivan affords members of the press less protection than many think. Sullivan's actual malice standard invites judges to create norms of acceptable journalistic conduct for news gathering, which members of the press and their lawyers use as maps to navigate around libel liability. The authors examine a large number of these judicial decisions and note the types of journalistic conduct at issue and what conduct the courts view positively. The authors …


Speech And The Self-Realization Value, Brian C. Murchison Nov 2013

Speech And The Self-Realization Value, Brian C. Murchison

Brian C. Murchison

None available.


Revisiting The American Action For Public Disclosure Of Facts, Brian C. Murchison Nov 2013

Revisiting The American Action For Public Disclosure Of Facts, Brian C. Murchison

Brian C. Murchison

None available.


The Fact-Conjecture Framework In U.S. Libel Law: Four Problems, Brian C. Murchison Oct 2013

The Fact-Conjecture Framework In U.S. Libel Law: Four Problems, Brian C. Murchison

Brian C. Murchison

A requirement of U.S. defamation law is that an actionable statement be factual in nature, but courts since Milkovich v. Lorain Journal Co., 497 U.S. 1 (1990), have had considerable difficulty in distinguishing factual from non-factual statements and in articulating the value of non-factual public discourse in all its diversity. This Article reviews four topics - intent, context, conjecture, and hyperbole - that have been particularly troublesome to courts. It argues for a fresh appraisal of Justice Brennan's dissenting opinion in Milkovich and brings into the conversation the works of several current political theorists on the contributions of passionate political …


Reflections On Breach Of Confidence From The U.S. Experience, Brian C. Murchison Oct 2013

Reflections On Breach Of Confidence From The U.S. Experience, Brian C. Murchison

Brian C. Murchison

Not available.


Speech And The Self-Governance Value, Brian C. Murchison Jan 2013

Speech And The Self-Governance Value, Brian C. Murchison

Brian C. Murchison

No abstract provided.


The Three Voices Of Libel, Randall Bezanson, Brian C. Murchison Jan 2013

The Three Voices Of Libel, Randall Bezanson, Brian C. Murchison

Brian C. Murchison

No abstract provided.


Anonymous Speech On The Internet, Brian C. Murchison Dec 2012

Anonymous Speech On The Internet, Brian C. Murchison

Brian C. Murchison

No abstract provided.