Law of Mass Communication - Exam #3

Telecommunications Act of 1996

Legislation that stated cable operators had the right to refuse to transmit a public access program that contained indecency

Public domain

Refers to creative materials that are not protected by intellectual property laws. The public can use public domain work without permission.

radio, television, geographical, interference

Spectrum scarcity describes the limitation of the number of segments of the broadcast spectrum that may be used for _______ or _______ in a specific _________ area without causing _________

Federal Trade Commission

A federal agency created in 1914. Its purpose is to promote free and fair competition in interstate commerce; this includes preventing false and misleading advertising

Lanham Act

A federal law that regulates the trademark registration process, but also contains a section permitting business competitors to sue one another for false advertising

Indecency

A narrow legal term referring to sexual expression and expletives inappropriate for children on broadcast radio or television

The Child Online Protection Act of 1998

A piece of legislation that has continuously been found unconstitutional; consists of overbroad restrictions against "harmful" content on the internet.

Tarnishment

A poorly made or unsavory product using a mark similar to a famous trademark that could cause consumers to think less of the well-known product

Hicklin rule

A rule that defines material as obscene if it tends to corrupt children.

Fair use

A test courts use to determine whether using another's copyrighted material without permission is legal or an infringement.

Roth Test

A test for determining obscenity that was refined several times; it was found to be ineffective and often confusing

distinctive, distinctive

A trademark will be protected only if it's ________. A trademark is __________ if it distinguishes one company's goods from another's.

Pornography

A vague (not legally precise) term for sexually oriented material

Trademark

A word, name, symbol or design used to identify a company's goods and distinguish them from similar products other companies make

Derivative work

A work that is obtained from or created in relation to an original work

Alcohol, tobacco, firearms, sexually explicit materials, drugs

A________, t_______, f_______, s_______ e_____ m______, and d_____ all fall under the umbrella of "vice products"

mislead

Ad regulation is justified if the ad has a tendency or potential to ________ consumers

Native Advertising

Ads designed to resemble the editorial content of the medium where they appear

Tacking

Allows a trademark owner to slightly alter a trademark without abandoning ownership over the original mark

Copyright

An exclusive legal right used to protect intellectual creations from unauthorized use

Statutory damages

Damages specified in certain laws. Under these laws, copyright being an example, a judge may award statutory damages even if a plaintiff is unable to prove actual damage

spectrum scarcity

In FCC v. Pacifica Foundation, the Supreme Court determined that, while broadcasters have First Amendment protection, their protection is limited because of spectrum scarcity

Literary, musical, dramatic, choreographic, pictorial, audiovisual, architectural, sound recordings

L_______, m______, d__________, c________, p___________, a______v______, and a_________ works are eligible for copyright protection, as well as sound recordings

obscenity, indecency

Laws that apply to sexual expression focus on ________ and ________

Digital Millenium Copyright Act

Legislation that bans software and hardware that facilitate circumventing copyright protection technology; also prohibits removing or changing copyright information, such as the copyright owner's name

Music Modernization Act

Legislation that ensures songwriters and artists receive royalties for songs recorded before 1972 and created the Mechanical Licensing Collective to help streaming services pay copyright holders

RICO Act

Legislation that forbids the use of money earned from illegal activities to finance legal or illegal businesses or nonprofit enterprises engaged in interstate commerce

Copyright Act of 1976

Legislation that specified what may be protected by copyright, what rights copyright protection includes, the restrictions on said rights, and the formalities necessary to exercise the rights. Remains the backbone of US copyright law.

Substantiation

Support of a claim with objective data or evidence

Patently Offensive

Term describing material with hardcore sexual conduct

Virginia Board of Pharmacy v. Virginia Citizens Consumer Council

The 1976 case in which the US Supreme Court defined commercial speech

Berne Convention

The primary international copyright treated adopted by many countries in 1886 and by the United States in 1988.

distinct

The right of a business to communicate political messages is (distinct/not distinct) from commercial speech

patently offensive, sexual, state

The second criterion of the Miller Test: The work describes, in a ________ _______ way, ________ conduct specifically defined by the applicable _______ laws

The nature of the copyrighted work

The second criterion of the fair use test

Safe harbor

The takedown notification provision of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act that protects internet service providers and video-sharing websites from claims of infringement when they do not know about or profit from the infringement and promptly comply with a takedown notice

Federal Communications Commission

What entity defines "indecency" as "language or material that, in context, depicts or describes in terms patently offensive as measured by contemporary community standards for the broadcast medium, sexual or excretory activities or organs"

The United States Supreme Court

What entity defines "indecency" as "nonconformance with accepted standards of morality?"

Prosecutorial Remedies and Other Tools to End the Exploitation of Children Today

What is the PROTECT Act?

Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act

What is the RICO Act?

Infringement by inducement

When a person or entity who does not directly infringe can be held liable for inducing others to infringe

Red-flag knowledge

When an internet service provider or website is aware of facts that would make infringement obvious to a reasonable person

Complexity

When it comes to intellectual property law, the core principles apply even as the _______ of law increases

Transformative use

When the reuse of an original copyrighted work has transformed the work's appearance or nature to such a degree that the use is not infringing

Arbitrary marks

Words that have ordinary meanings unrelating to the product or service

Work made for hire

Work created when working for another person or company. The copyright in a work made for hire belongs to the employer, not the creator

Accidental, contributory, vicarious

______, ______, and _______ are all terms that describe types of copyright infringement

Roth v. United States

A 1957 case in which the U.S. Supreme Court confirmed that the First Amendment did not protect obscene publications and materials; this case also rejected the Hicklin rule, however, and narrowed the definition of obscenity

Safe Harbor Policy

A Federal Communications Commission policy designating 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. as a time when broadcast radio and television stations may air indecent material without violating federal law or FCC regulations

Serious social value

A blanket term describing the principle that material cannot be found obscene if it has serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value determined using national standards

Puffery

Exaggerated but generally legal subjective advertising claims that no reasonable person would take literally

rejected

For cable television, local restrictions on indecent content have frequently been ________ by courts

upheld

In Roth v. United States, the Supreme Court _______ Samuel Roth's conviction for mailing sexually explicit literature

Eight

In copyright protection, there are _______ categories of eligible works

prurient, interest, redeeming, societal, importance

In its initial incarnation, the Roth Test defined speech as obscene if it appealed to __________ __________ and was without __________ _________ __________

Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union

In this case, the Supreme Court rejected the indecency provision of the Communications Decency Act through strict scrutiny analysis.

patent, trademark, copyright

Intellectual property law includes _______, _________, and _______ statutes.

Fanciful marks

Invented marks, including made-up words; most likely to receive trademark protection

Prurient Interest

Lustful thoughts or sexual desires

Descriptive marks

Marks that describe the product or service and leave little to a consumer's imagination, and that must attach a distinctive meaning to the product or service to be trademarked

Suggestive marks

Marks that suggest a product's source or manufacturer's business, but do not describe what the product is

Deceptive advertising

Material claims made in the promotion, advertising or marketing of products or services that are likely to deceive consumers

Secondary meaning

Meaning beyond a word's common meaning. To obtain this, the public must associate a word with a product's source or producer - not the product itself.

are

Messages designed to promote commerce (are/are not) regulable

Vice products

Products related to activities generally considered unhealthy or immoral, or whose use is restricted by age or other conditions

First-sale doctrine

Once a copyright owner sells a copy of a work, the new owner may possess, transfer or otherwise dispose of that copy without the copyright owner's permission

Transmit Clause

Part of the 1976 Copyright Act that says broadcast networks, local broadcasters and cable television systems perform a work when they transmit content to viewers.

privacy, tort

Sexual expression issues may intersect with ______ and other ______ laws

Hicklin

The Comstock Act of 1873 used the ______ rule as the primary test for determining obscenity

deceptive

The Constitution does not protect _______ advertising

has not

The FCC (has/has not) attempted to extend its broadcast indecency regulations to cable television

Corrective advertising

The Federal Trade Commission power to require an advertiser to advertise or otherwise distribute information to correct false or misleading advertisement claims

does

The First Amendment (does/does not) protect possession of obscene material in the privacy of one's own home

obscene

The First Amendment protects filmmakers and requires proof that a work is _________

not

The Hicklin test is (still/not) used today

1870

The Library of Congress was established in _________

commercial, exploration

The Supreme Court determined that commercial speech warrants reduced First Amendment protection if it does nothing more than propose a ________ transaction and is unrelated to the _______ of ideas, truth, science and the arts

Liquormart, Inc. v. Rhode Island

The WOW case

Statute of Anne

The first copyright law, adopted in England in 1710; protected authors' works if the authors registered them with the government

average person, community, prurient interests

The first criterion of the Miller Test: "The ______ ______, applying contemporary _______ standards," would find that the work appeals to ___________ ___________

Purpose and character of use

The first criterion of the fair use test

The effect on the plaintiff's potential market

The fourth criterion of the fair use test

Intellectual Property Law

The legal category including copyright, trademark and patent law

1866

The length of copyright protect was first extended in ______

Contributory infringement

The participation in, or contribution to, the infringing acts of another person

literary, artistic, political, scientific

The third criterion of the Miller Test: The work lacks serious l_____, a_____, p_____ or s_______ value

The amount and substantiality of the portion used

The third criterion of the fair use test

Infringement

The unauthorized manufacture, sale, or distribution of an item protected by copyright, patent or trademark law.

is

There (is/is not) First Amendment protection for commercial speech

isn't

There ______ agreement on what constitutes offensive sexual expression

Comstock Act of 1873

This legislation prohibited the mailing of obscene materials

Central Hudson Commercial Speech Test

This test states that the government may regulate advertising that is false, misleading or deceptive, in addition to advertising for unlawful goods or services; accurate advertising for legal goods and services may also be restricted based upon reasonable state interest.

Communications Decency Act

Title V of the Telecommunications Act of 1996; The CDA made it illegal to knowingly transmit "obscene or indecent messages to any recipient under 18 years of age" or to make available "patently offensive messages to anyone under 18 years old."

Disparaging marks

Trademarks considered immoral, disparaging or deceptive under the Lanham Act; protected by the First Amendment

Vicarious infringement

Under common law principles, companies are responsible for the acts of employees if the acts are within the nature and scope of their employment and the company has a financial interest in the infringement and the ability to control it

Dilution

Using a famous trademark in a way that disparages or diminishes the mark's effectiveness in the market; can be caused by blurring or tarnishment

Fanciful, arbitrary, suggestive, descriptive

________, ________, ________ and ________ are all terms that describe types of trademarks