Deck 7: News-Gathering

Question 1

Which of the following is not one of the required options stipulated by the FCC for recording interstate phone calls?

A)Submitting a signed "Consent to Record" form to the FCC
B)Notifying all parties at the beginning of a call that it will be recorded
C)Obtaining all parties' consent to recording
D)Uing a regularly-repeating "beep" tone so all parties will be aware the call is being recorded

Answer 1

A

Question 2

A photographer who will not leave subjects alone is most vulnerable to what lawsuit?

A)fraud
B)misrepresentation
C)harassment
D)trespass

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Newsgathering is protected primarily by

A)the First Amendment to the U.S.Constitution
B)the U.S.and state constitutions
C)federal and state statutes
D)common law decisions

Answer 3

C

Question 4

The line of cases exemplified by Food Lion v.Capital Cities/ABC indicates that

A)libel remains the area of law that most concerns media defendants
B)plaintiffs are suing media defendants for newsgathering techniques more often than they did in years past
C)media defendants need not be concerned about using fraudulent newsgathering techniques
D)juries tend to favor the news media and their First Amendment rights over plaintiffs' concerns about newsgathering techniques

Question 5

The regulations for embedding journalists with military troops prior to the 2003 United States invasion of Iraq were established by the

A)U.S.president
B)FBI
C)Department of Defense
D)CIA

Question 6

In situations where an illegally-obtained recording falls into a journalist's hands (as in Bartnicki v.Vopper),what is true?

A)The journalist may not legally broadcast the recording under any circumstances
B)The journalist may legally broadcast the recording as long as its origin is determined first
C)Particularly when it involves a matter of public concern,the unknown origin does not remove the First Amendment right to broadcast the recording
D)The authenticity of the recording must be determined before the recording can be broadcast

Question 7

If a newspaper reporter records a telephone interview,

A)the reporter may use information from the interview in a story only with the interviewee's consent
B)the reporter may use information from the interview in a story without the interviewee's consent
C)whether the reporter may use information from the story depends on federal law
D)whether the reporter may use information from the story depends on the law in the state where the newspaper is located

Question 8

"Ride-alongs" have been a commonly used practice in news coverage of law enforcement and other emergency personnel.Which of the following statements about this practice best describes where the law now stands on these?

A)As long as a journalist is accompanying law enforcement authorities,the journalist has access to any place where there is a public interest in what is happening
B)By calling for emergency medical assistance,a home dweller has given implied consent to the news media to report on what is happening inside the dwelling
C)As long as a journalist obtains permission from a law enforcement agent,the journalist may enter private property legally
D)Merely accompanying emergency personnel does not grant the consent necessary; journalists who make that assumption are susceptible to an intrusion lawsuit

Question 9

The First Amendment's protection of freedom of the press protects the right of the press [Intro] Factual

A)to publish what it knows
B)to publish what it knows without legal penalty for the contents
C)to obtain information it seeks from government
D)to obtain access to government places and information

Question 10

How have the producers of television programs such as "COPS" dealt with the U.S.Supreme Court rulings on ride-alongs?

A)they have ignored the rulings,deciding to take their chances in court
B)they claim to obtain releases from everyone involved in the program
C)they ceased production of such programs
D)they disguise the identity of everyone in the program

Question 11

The Freedom of Information Act permits access to records held by federal

A)agencies
B)courts
C)institutions
D)employees

Question 12

General laws that incidentally limit news media's ability to gather information are [Intro] Factual

A)presumptively unconstitutional
B)routinely ignored without punishment
C)overturned by the supremacy clause
D)generally constitutional unless they unreasonably target the press

Question 13

When it comes to recording interstate telephone conversations,what law or regulation applies?

A)FCC regulations
B)regulations of the state in which the person making the call resides
C)regulations of the state in which the person receiving the call resides
D)there is no clear requirement

Question 14

Who may use the FOIA to request federal government records?

A)journalists
B)any employee of a news-gathering organization
C)any U.S.citizen
D)anyone

Question 15

Of the following,which one is most directly related to regulating access to student records?

A)FOIA
B)FERPA
C)Privacy Act
D)HIPAA

Question 16

Of the following,which one is most directly related to regulating access to medical records?

A)FOIA
B)FERPA
C)Privacy Act
D)HIPAA

Question 17

How long does a federal agency have to respond to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)request?

A)10 working days
B)20 working days
C)30 working days
D)365 days

Question 18

Compared to members of the public,how much access to documents,records,and news event sites do journalists have?

A)more
B)less
C)the same
D)it depends on the state

Question 19

When it comes to recording face-to-face conversations,the majority of U.S.states are

A)"all-party" states
B)"no-party" states
C)"one party" states
D)"several party" states

Question 20

Which of the following statements about the federal FOIA is true?

A)Its exemptions are supposed to be construed narrowly
B)It is the model for many states' open records laws
C)Its exemptions are mandatory,rather than permissive or discretionary
D)The precise interpretation of the exemptions is clearly stated in the law

Question 21

Ag-gag laws are [Access to Private Property] Factual

A)state laws that limit access to agricultural and livestock facilities
B)state laws that prevent publication of factual information about agricultural and livestock facilities
C)federal statutes that prevent GMO labeling of food products
D)none of the above

Question 22

Laws governing the use of cameras and recording devices exist [Covert Recording] Factual

A)only at the federal level
B)only through interpretation of the First Amendment
C)primarily at the state level
D)none of the above

Question 23

Plaintiffs' claims of fraud or misrepresentation are unlikely to succeed when brought against individuals clearly identifying themselves as journalists.

Question 24

The wording of the Freedom of Information Act allows federal agencies significant flexibility in determining whether a record should be disclosed.

Question 25

The right of citizens to take photographs in public places,including locations of police activity,is [Access to Public Property] Factual

A)established by clear federal law
B)unlimited
C)absolutely overridden by the authority of police
D)protected to some degree by the First Amendment

Question 26

The final ruling in the case of Food Lion v.Capital Cities Inc. [Fraud and Misrepresentation] Conceptual

A)serves to caution journalists about the use of hidden cameras
B)required the news organization to pay $5.5 million in punitive damages
C)demonstrates that news organizations do not lose lawsuits unless their stories are untrue
D)illustrates that courts care more about the outcome of newsgathering than the process

Question 27

By definition,the use of hidden cameras as a newsgathering technique is intrusive and therefore always illegal.

Question 28

The U.S.Supreme Court has clearly stated that there is First Amendment protection for newsgathering.

Question 29

In cases involving the use of drones to photograph private property,courts around the world have

A)absolutely protected the freedom to photograph
B)generally punished this uninvited photography without establishing clear rules or tests
C)said they had insufficient facts about the technology to render decisions
D)protected the unlimited right of private property owners to be free of uninvited photographs

Question 30

The right of journalists to be on-location at the site of news events is [Access to Property] Factual

A)clearly established by Supreme Court decisions
B)clearly established by the federal Freedom of Access law
C)not clearly established
D)clearly established by common law and historic practice

Question 31

Journalist ride-alongs with police are [Access to Private Property] Factual

A)prohibited by federal law
B)not a legitimate enhancement of law enforcement and likely illegal if journalists enter private property
C)regulated entirely by local and state laws
D)protected under the First Amendment right to gather news

Question 32

Tortious newsgathering is a newsgathering pitfall [Harassment] Vocabulary

A)common to every working journalist who conducts interviews with uncooperative sources
B)and crime subject to a minimum penalty of 5 years in jail
C)only when it involves physical trespass
D)of overly aggressive newsgathering using wrongful and unlawful reporting techniques

Question 33

When invited by government officials to accompany them,journalists may enter private property without the content of the property owner or resident.

Question 34

The right of access in the United States is [Chapter] Conceptual

A)recognized by courts as central to the rights of free speech and free press firmly protected by the First Amendment
B)determined by one federal law that clarifies both the right and its limits
C)complicated in ways that present challenges for private citizens and working journalists
D)greatest for working journalists,who are protected by the First Amendment's right to gather news

Question 35

The doctrine of generally applicable laws significantly pertains to newsgathering.

Question 36

As irritating as paparazzi can be,courts have consistently ruled their actions are simply part of the newsgathering process and violate no laws.

Question 37

Reporting social media content [Covert Recording] Factual

A)is always beneficial
B)is always an invasion of privacy
C)is always legal if you cite the source
D)can be perilous

Question 38

A U.S.Supreme Court ruling suggests that a journalist may legally broadcast an anonymously provided recording of a conversation even if the recording was obtained illegally.

Question 39

Misrepresentation is both an ethical and a legal problem that may arise only when reporters [Fraud and Misrepresentation] Factual

A)hide the fact that they work for a media outlet
B)hide the nature of the story they are developing
C)hide recording devices
D)all of the above

Question 40

The authority of public safety officials to control the behavior of people,including journalists,on public property is [Access to Public Property] Factual

A)established by clear federal law
B)unlimited
C)not unlimited but extensive
D)absolutely overridden by the First Amendment

Question 41

The U.S.Supreme Court has found no general First Amendment protection for newsgathering.
Conceptual Newsgathering Pitfalls

Question 42

Today's media rely heavily on recording as a means of newsgathering and reporting overtly or covertly by reporters and others.Use a specific situation and type of recording to discuss three types of laws that may affect the rights of news media to record and distribute such recordings.
[Recording … throughout the chapter] Factual

Question 43

Sunshine laws guarantee access to state records.
Vocabulary Newsgathering Protections

Question 44

What does it mean to say the First Amendment can be viewed as either "shield" or "sword"?

Question 45

Courts have not settled on a single,clear rationale or test to determine journalists' (and the public's)right of access to quasi-public spaces-government land,military sites,polling places,and the like.In recent years,however,several Circuit Courts of Appeal have relied on a two-prong test the Supreme Court developed to decide cases involving access to courtrooms.Explain the test and the outcomes it has produced to discuss whether the courts appear to be increasing or decreasing the right of public access to these quasi-public spaces.
[Access to Quasi Public Property] Conceptual

Question 46

The federal Freedom of Information Act provides for the release of personal information at agency discretion even if the federal Privacy Act says the information cannot be released.
Conceptual Newsgathering Protections

Question 47

Explain what is meant when FOIA exemptions are described as discretionary,not mandatory.

Question 48

The Food Lion case revolved around undercover journalists investigating various practices in grocery stores.

Question 49

The federal Freedom of Information Act guarantees access to federal court documents.
Factual Newsgathering Protections

Question 50

The exemptions to the federal Freedom of Information prohibit any government agency from releasing any of the covered records.
Conceptual Newsgathering Protections

Question 51

Discuss the significance and impact of the Food Lion,Inc.v.Capital Cities/ABC,Inc.case.

Question 52

State open-records laws uniformly cover access to both physical and electronic/digital records.
[State Open-Records Laws] Factual

Question 53

The "housekeeping" exemption to the Freedom of Information Act permits federal agencies to withhold information about cleaning products.
[Access to Federal Records] Factual

Question 54

The federal Privacy Act's limits on federal disclosure of private information prevail when it conflicts with the disclosure requirements of the Freedom of Information Act.
[Privacy Act] Factual

Question 55

The Supreme Court has held that the disclosure of public records that name private individuals "is not what the framers of FOIA had in mind."
[Access to Federal Records] Factual

Question 56

The law that governs the recording of conversations is uniform nationwide.

Question 57

The First Amendment absolutely and completely protects the right of a citizen to nondisruptively record police activity.
[Access to Public Property] Factual