View the full version of the February 2022 Media, Entertainment and First Amendment Newsletter.
Racial Justice Movement and COVID-19 Pandemic Highlight Importance of Police Oversight and Access to Judicial Proceedings
Two important government institutions—police departments and the judicial system—largely function in a black box. Police conduct most of their day-to-day activities outside the watchful eye of the public. Judges, too, typically operate in empty courtrooms with limited public oversight. But since March 2020, the sunlight on these two government bodies has started shining brighter.
View of President Biden’s Potential Supreme Court Nominees through a Media Law Lens
President Biden’s first nominee to the Supreme Court could be a boon to the media law bar. Two of the leading contenders — D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson and California Supreme Court Justice Leondra Kruger — worked as reporters before law school, and each has written opinions that promote government transparency and uphold key First Amendment protections. A third contender, U.S. District Judge J. Michelle Childs, has a more limited record on First Amendment issues.
LEGO MY JACKET! Fashion Designer Sues Toy Maker Over Mini-Fig Jacket Resembling Artist’s Design
Danish toy maker LEGO received a rather harsh critique from New York-based fashion designer James Concannon, who is suing the world’s largest toy company over its wardrobe selection for one of the plastic characters in the “Fab 5 Loft” LEGO set which is based on Netflix’s Queer Eye series.
