First Amendment Commons^™

The Future Of Freedom Of Expression Online, Evelyn Aswad

Faculty Articles

Should social media companies ban Holocaust denial from their platforms? What about conspiracy theorists that spew hate? Does good corporate citizenship mean platforms should remove offensive speech or tolerate it? The content moderation rules that companies develop to govern speech on their platforms will have significant implications for the future of freedom of expression. Given that the prospects for compelling platforms to respect users’ free speech rights are bleak within the U.S. system, what can be done to protect this important right? In June 2018, the United Nations’ top expert for freedom of expression called on companies to align their …

Say What You Want: How Unfettered Freedom Of Speech On The Internet Creates No Recourse For Those Victimized, Wes Gerrie

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

In today’s society, virtually everyone relies on online posts in order to make decisions—from what products to purchase to what restaurants to visit. The introduction and increase of online communication has made posting reviews online a simpler, easier, and more efficient process. However, the increase of online communication has threatened the delicate balance between free speech and harmful speech.

A tangled web of recent case law and federal law exists which aggressively protects the free speech of online reviewers. The law has carved out immunity for the website operators that host an online reviewer’s comments, which in turn makes an …

Masthead

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

No abstract provided.

Deepfake Videos: When Seeing Isn't Believing, Holly Kathleen Hall

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

Videos, known as deepfakes, use readily available software to create a work that shows people saying and doing things they may never have uttered or engaged in. The technology making the videos appear very authentic is advancing at such a rate that people may not be able to detect if the videos are fact or fiction. Given the hasty acceptance of other forms of fake news in society, deepfake videos have the ability to affect the nature of information the public receives about candidates and policies. This study examines the potential use of deepfake videos in the democratic process, analyzes …

When Lies Go Viral: The First Amendment Implications Of Regulating The Spread Of Fake News, Madeleine Rosuck

SMU Science and Technology Law Review

No abstract provided.

#I🔫U: Considering The Context Of Online Threats, Lyrissa Barnett Lidsky, Linda Riedemann Norbutt

UF Law Faculty Publications

The United States Supreme Court has failed to grapple with the unique interpretive difficulties presented by social media threats cases. Social media make hateful and threatening speech more common but also magnify the potential for a speaker's innocent words to be misunderstood People speak differently on different social media platforms, and architectural features of platforms, such as character limits, affect the meaning of speech. The same is true of other contextual clues unique to social media, such as gifs, hashtags, and emojis. Only by understanding social media contexts can legal decision-makers avoid overcriminalization of speech protected by the First Amendment. …

Defamation And Privacy In The Social Media Age: What Would Justice Brennan Think?, Stephen Wermiel

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

No abstract provided.

Think Of An Elephant? Tweeting As "Framing" Executive Power, Fernando R. Laguarda

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

No abstract provided.

Ng9-1-1, Cybersecurity, And Contributions To The Model Framework For A Secure National Infrastructure, Andrew Jackson Coley

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

9-1-1 call networks form the foundation of emergency communications infrastructure. However, a lack of funding and taking such networks for granted has led to a gradual yet predictable outdating of this critical infrastructure. Fortunately, recent efforts have acknowledged as such, and dedicated public safety officials have worked to update 9-1-1 systems to Next Generation 9-1-1 (NG9-1-1).
NG9-1-1 is an IP-based network with 21^stcentury technology capable of handling increased call volume, more resilient networks, and providing significantly more data to first responders, among litany of other advancements. With this much needed advancement comes the responsibilities of ensuring a secure …

Alexa, Who Owns My Pillow Talk? Contracting, Collaterizing, And Monetizing Consumer Privacy Through Voice-Captured Personal Data, Anne Logsdon Smith

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

With over one-fourth of households in the U.S. alone now using voice-activated digital assistant devices such as Amazon’s Echo (better known as “Alexa”) and Google’s Home, companies are recording and transmitting record volumes of voice data from the privacy of people’s homes to servers across the globe. These devices capture conversations about everything from online shopping to food preferences to entertainment recommendations to bedtime stories, and even phone and appliance use. With “Big Data” and business analytics expected to be a $203 billion-plus industry by 2020, companies are racing to acquire and leverage consumer data by selling it, licensing it, …

Robotic Speakers And Human Listeners, Helen Norton

Publications

In their new book, Robotica, Ron Collins and David Skover assert that we protect speech not so much because of its value to speakers but instead because of its affirmative value to listeners. If we assume that the First Amendment is largely, if not entirely, about serving listeners’ interests—in other words, that it’s listeners all the way down—what would a listener-centered approach to robotic speech require? This short symposium essay briefly discusses the complicated and sometimes even dark side of robotic speech from a listener-centered perspective.

Is The First Amendment Obsolete?, Tim Wu

Michigan Law Review

The First Amendment was brought to life in a period, the twentieth century, when the political speech environment was markedly different than today’s. With respect to any given issue, speech was scarce and limited to a few newspapers, pamphlets or magazines. The law was embedded, therefore, with the presumption that the greatest threat to free speech was direct punishment of speakers by government.

Today, in the internet and social media age, it is no longer speech that is scarce—rather, it is the attention of listeners. And those who seek to control speech use new methods that rely on the weaponization …

Table Of Contents

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

No abstract provided.

Extremist Speech, Compelled Conformity, And Censorship Creep, Danielle K. Citron

Faculty Scholarship

Silicon Valley has long been viewed as a full-throated champion of First Amendment values. The dominant online platforms, however, have recently adopted speech policies and processes that depart from the U.S. model. In an agreement with the European Commission, tech companies have pledged to respond to reports of hate speech within twenty-four hours, a hasty process that may trade valuable expression for speedy results. Plans have been announced for an industry database that will allow the same companies to share hashed images of banned extremist content for review and removal elsewhere.

These changes are less the result of voluntary market …

Four Principles For Digital Expression (You Won't Believe #3!), Danielle K. Citron, Neil Richards

Faculty Scholarship

At the dawn of the Internet’s emergence, the Supreme Court rhapsodized about its potential as a tool for free expression and political liberation. In ACLU v. Reno (1997), the Supreme Court adopted a bold vision of Internet expression to strike down a federal law - the Communications Decency Act - that restricted digital expression to forms that were merely “decent.” Far more than the printing press, the Court explained, the mid-90s Internet enabled anyone to become a town crier. Communication no longer required the permission of powerful entities. With a network connection, the powerless had as much luck reaching a …

Four Principles For Digital Expression (You Won't Believe #3!), Neil M. Richards, Danielle Keats Citron

Scholarship@WashULaw

At the dawn of the Internet’s emergence, the Supreme Court rhapsodized about its potential as a tool for free expression and political liberation. In ACLU v. Reno (1997), the Supreme Court adopted a bold vision of Internet expression to strike down a federal law–the Communications Decency Act–that restricted digital expression to forms that were merely “decent.” Far more than the printing press, the Court explained, the mid-90s Internet enabled anyone to become a town crier. Communication no longer required the permission of powerful entities. With a network connection, the powerless had as much luck reaching a mass audience as the …

Unmasking The Teen Cyberbully: A First Amendment-Compliant Approach To Protecting Child Victims Of Anonymous, School-Related Internet Harassment, Benjamin A. Holden

Akron Law Review

In proposing a new rule under the First Amendment to adjudicate anonymous Cyberbullying cases, this Article first reviews and summarizes the First Amendment precedents governing regulation of speech by minors and student speech in the school environment. Second, it reviews and discusses the prevalence of minors’ online harassment or Cyberbullying, including pre-litigation disputes reported in the press. Third, it reviews and summarizes the First Amendment precedents governing the “unmasking” of anonymous speakers. Finally, the Cyberbully Unmasking Test is proposed and applied.

Censorship On The Internet: Who Should Make The Rules, Joe Zopolsky

Oklahoma Journal of Law and Technology

No abstract provided.

Courthouses, Bookshelves, And Portals: The Implications Of U.S. V. American Library Association On First Amendment Forum Analysis And Future Internet-Based Litigation Strategies, Alexandra R. Harrington

Oklahoma Journal of Law and Technology

No abstract provided.

Cyberspace…The Final Frontier: How The Communications Decency Act Allows Entrepreneurs To Boldly Go Where No Blog Has Gone Before, Aaron Jackson

Oklahoma Journal of Law and Technology

No abstract provided.

Amend The Communications Decency Act To Protect Victims Of Sexual Exploitation, Samantha Vardaman

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

No abstract provided.

The Freedom From Sexploitation Agenda: Policy And Legislative Recommendations To Curb Sexual Exploitation, Dawn Hawkins

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

No abstract provided.

Is Your Health Data Really Private? The Need To Update Hipaa Regulations To Incorporate Third-Party And Non-Covered Entities, Latena Hazard

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

This note argues that the current framework that governs health care applications and consumer privacy is slacking and outlines strategies to ensure protection against third party accessibility of information that consumers deem private.

Table Of Contents

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

No abstract provided.

Masthead

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

No abstract provided.

Section 337 Of The Tariff Act Of 1930 And Its Impacts On China, Yiqing Yin

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

337 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (“Section 337”) is one of the statutes that prohibit unfair trade or unfair competition in importation, and it aims at protecting intellectual property at the United States borders. Because of the international impacts of Section 337 and the injunctive nature of its remedies, the application of the statute has profound impacts on the trade between U.S. and other countries.

China is a country that has enormous trade with the U.S and imports large amounts of goods to the U.S. each year. Moreover, the weak intellectual property protection in China has been a serious …

Examining The Legalization Of Daily Fantasy Sports, Mark Dourmashkin

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

No abstract provided.

How Might The Supreme Court, If It Reviews The Federal Communication's 2015 Open Internet Order, Utilize The Chevron And Arbitrary And Capricious Tests?, John B. Meisel

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

The article focuses on two Supreme Court decisions, King v. Burwell and FCC v. Fox Televisions Stations, Inc., that provide diametrically different models for how deferential a court should be when it reviews administrative action. The former case addresses how deferential a court should be for an agency’s statutory interpretation of an ambiguous statute for a question that has significant economic and political effects but Congress had not expressly delegated the question to the agency. The latter case addresses how deferential a court should be when an agency’s changes a policy that is within its statutory authority. These two …

#Cautionbusinesses: Using Competitors' Hashtags Could Possibly Lead To Trademark Infringement, Debbie Chu

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

No abstract provided.

Candidate Appearances, Equal Time, And The Fcc's Online Public File Database: Empirical Data On Tv Station Compliance During The 2016 Presidential Primary, Christopher Terry

Catholic University Journal of Law and Technology

Following the appearances of presidential candidates Donald Trump, Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton on episodes of Saturday Night Live, local television affiliates were required to upload documents related to the appearances to the FCC’s online public file database. After discussing the FCC’s database, the Bona Fide News Exception and the modern application of Section 315’s Equal Time Requirements, this study examines the compliance by the local NBC affiliates in the top 100 television markets with the public file requirements for candidate appearances and subsequent equal time requests as a test of station compliance with the requirements of the FCC’s online …