Ithaca College

Ithaca, New York –May 14, 2020 ~  Land rights and ownership, natural resources, missing and murdered women, border identification and precedent-setting laws of the American Indian communities of the United States were a central focus of discovery for thirteen journalism law students at Ithaca College in the Roy H Park School of Communications.

“Laws impact the way journalists are able to do their jobs and what information they are able to report to their publics,” says Ann-Marie Adams, instructor for the journalism law course. “In this course, we reviewed the principles underlying relevant law and court cases with an emphasis on jurisdiction and precedents.” 

This course offered by the Department of Journalism at Ithaca College examines the American legal and policymaking systems so that students can gain an understanding of how laws, particularly the First Amendment, address a range of issues involving freedom of speech and press, including courts of law, defamation, libel, prior restraint, shield laws, open access, privacy, and the public’s right to know. 

The presentation case study assigned during the course involved case law analysis, individual investigative work, and requests for information (FOI) to frame a podcast series produced by the students. The students present this series as an ethical and case law analysis focused on identifying issue areas, the evidence or facts that pertain to the case(s), and the extrinsic factors that inform the case. 

In a debrief session held on Thursday, May 14, 2020, the students reflected on their journey to frame a legal story with a journalistic lens.  As well, they were asked to reflect on their experience in submitting a FOI and interpreting the laws and federal regulations associated with Native Americans. This particular semester was disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic and the experience of filing a FOI request during this time period made for a unique student experience. 

The podcast series will go live on Friday, May 15, 2020, at soundcloud.com/icjournalismlaw.

For more information about the course or the student podcast contact Ann-Marie Adams, instructor via email at aadams4@ithaca or cell at (607) 229.8071. 

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