Communications law is almost always civil (not criminal) in the US, Europe and Latin America. A civil law case is a legal contest between individuals or corporations. It the government is involved, it’s usually because an individual public official has been named. The US government does not bring libel suits, and only individuals in the government can be sued.
A civil case revolves around both a) damages and financial compensation and b) requests for the court to act in a way that benefits either the petitioner (plaintiff) or respondent (defendant).
Communications law in the US involves many First Amendment issues directly, but some only indirectly. For example, issues involving the establishment of religion clause or symbolic speech (flag burning) are not necessarily media issues but can be First Amendment issues.
By the same token, a good deal of media law involves non-First Amendment areas such as copyright or broadcasting regulations.
Communication law involves both content issues and structural issues.
- Content issues are guided by Constitutional guarantees, especially the First Amendment
- Content issues like prior restraint, libel, invasion of privacy, and obscenity are tried in civil courts .
- Content issues involving advertising, copyright and some broadcast indecency are governed by legislation and regulatory law through agencies like the FTC, Library of Congress, FDA and FCC. These regulations are then subject to appeal through the courts.
- Structural issues usually involve statutory law and regulations, for example, limitations on the ownership of television and radio stations; questions about corporate mergers in light of “anti-trust” (anti-monopoly) laws; the extent of competition among digital media technology giants such as Facebook and Google.
Communications law does not include all elements of Entertainment Law as Wikipedia defines it.
- It does not include contract law, employment law, labor law, bankruptcy law, immigration law, most securities laws, private international law, or insurance law — all of which may be elements of an entertainment law practice.
- But it does include:
US MEDIA CONTENT REGULATION
| Media type | Content Issues | Resolved through |
|---|---|---|
| All | Prior restraint / censorship | Federal agencies seek court injunctions Very high burden of proof on government Military & national security exceptions |
| All | Defamation / Libel | Private civil lawsuits only Public figures bringing suit have high burden of proof |
| All | Invasion of Privacy / False light, publication of private facts | Private civil lawsuits only, usually state courts, Public figures bringing suit have high burden of proof |
| All media, esp. photography | Invasion of Privacy / intrusion by media, misappropriation of likeness | Private civil lawsuits only Usually state courts |
| All media | Copyright | Statutory law through Library of Congress Copyright Office, US Courts, WIPO, Bern Convention international treaty; DMCA takedown notices; private civil lawsuits |
| Advertising | Most products & services | Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations |
| Advertising | Medical products | Food & Drug Administration (FDA) regulations |
| Broadcasting | Advertising to children, obscenity, indecency | Federal Communications Commission (FCC) . |
US MEDIA STRUCTURAL REGULATION
| Media Type | Structural issues | Resolved through |
|---|---|---|
| Print ownership | Anti-trust law | Justice Dept., US Congress |
| Broadcast ownership | Anti-trust law, FCC regulations | Justice Dept, FCC, US Congress |
| Broadcast, cable and satellite technology | Frequency allocation, technical standards, etc. | International Telecommunications Union, ISO (UN) |
| Internet and web | Domain names, technical standards | ICANN, ITU (UN) |