The Law of Public Communication ─ 2016

The Law of Public Communication provides an overview of media law that includes the most current legal developments today. It explains the laws affecting the daily work of writers, broadcasters, advertisers, cable operators, Internet service providers, public relations practitioners, photographers, bloggers, and other public communicators. Authors Kent Middleton and William Lee take students through the basic legal principles and methods of analysis that allows students to study and keep abreast of the rapidly changing field of public communication. By presenting statutes and cases in a cohesive manner that is understandable, even to students studying law for the first time, the authors ensure that students will acquire a firm grasp of the legal issues affecting the media.

This 2016 Update brings the Ninth Edition up to date with the most recent cases and examples effecting media professionals and public communicators. New topics include Supreme Court decisions on internet harassment and the streaming company Aereo, the FCC’s efforts to reclassify broadband providers as telecommunication services, court cases dealing publicity rights for celebrity athletes in video games, and the recent presidential executive order regarding new government information sources.

Kent R. Middleton is Professor of journalism at the University of Georgia.

William E. Lee is Professor of journalism at the University of Georgia.