In-Class Practice Exercise

Chapter 21 Media Law

Text: Page 463, Exercise #1

Discuss the following situations with your group:

A.A reporter is on an assignment with a photographer who enters a house without
permission and photographs the sale of illegal drugs. Should the reporter publish the
photos?
B. A reporter is covering a sexual assault trial in which the victim is a young man. The
arresting officer tells the reporter that the crime is not a surprise because the victim is
queer. Should the reporter use the officers quotation?
C. A team of reporters is working on a series of articles about possible corruption in the
city agency responsible for zoning. One reporter gets an anonymous call from a senior
official offering to give information about wrongdoing, but only on condition of anonymity.
Should the reporter agree to anonymity for the source?
D. A journalist comes into possession of a private e-mail sent by a well-known person to
an apparent lover and considers quoting the e-mail and the recipients name in a blog.
Should the reporter use the e-mail and the recipients name?