Ethical and Legal Guidelines

Student Press Rights & Responsibilities Legal Decisions Have Changed Students’ Rights Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier decision of 1988. Administration has the right to review the materials before publication and remove materials considered unsuitable. Supreme Court decisions and changing public views have increased restrictiosn on student’s First Amendment Rights. In the landmark Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier decision in 1988, the majority opinion of the court granted school administrators the right to exercise “editorial control” over school-sponsored publications. You as the yearbook staff should therefore work with the administrators to establish clear guidelines for what is acceptable in the publications.

Student Responsibilities Fairness: Tell both sides of a story without inserting your opinion. Accuracy: Check all names, quotes and information, especially copy submitted by non-yearbook staff. Good Taste: The publication is free of questionable or obscene material.

Libel Ask your self: Basic Elements “Could anyone consider this to be an attack on a person’s reputation or good name?” Basic Elements Publication Identification Injury Fault Libel is false printed statement that attacks a person’s reputation. Every reference to individuals should pass the libel test. A person’s reputation is a valuable asset that is legally protected. Yearbook staffs have to be on guard by reviewing all copy and photos for potential libel. For each photo and copy block ask the question, “could anyone consider this to be an attack on a person’s reputation or good name?” Basic Elements of Libel include: Publication: In order to be libelous, a statement must be published. A personal Letter cannot libel a person. Identification: An individual must be identifiable. Even if the person’s name is not used, if even a small group of people can identify the person, the statement can be considered libelous. Injury: If an individual’s reputation is damaged, even among a small group, the statement an be considered to be libelous. Fault: this is controversial because it is based on circumstance. A reporter’s potential fault in libel cases depends on whether the individual claiming libel is a public figure or not. And on whether a reporter verified the information in a story before it was published. A public figure, like a mayor can only claim damages if the reporter didn’t check facts or acted with malice.

BEST DEFENSE… TRUTH A STATEMENT PROVEN TRUE IS NOT LIBELOUS. An even better approach is to avoid potentially libelous statements. Check your facts carefully, make sure you consult more than one source and avoid any malicious intent.

COPYRIGHTS & TRADEMARKS

Trademark Can Be: Usually identified with these symbols Word Name Device Usually identified with these symbols ® ™ A trademark is a word, name, symbol, device or any combination of these items used to identify a product, service, brand or idea. Most trademarks are identified with the symbols ® You cannot use the these materials in the yearbook without getting permission from the owner. For example, you cannot use the Nike Swoosh as a graphic theme. Even the name “Elvis” and “Elvis Presley” cannot be used for a product since these names are controlled by the late singer’s estate.

Copyrights Legally owned by someone else. Song Lyrics Poetry Quotes Titles of books movies Stamps Cartoon characters Photos of famous people Movies and television characters Games Much of the material that you run across in your daily life is legally owned by someone else. For example, song lyrics, poetry, quotes, titles of books movies, stamps, cartoon characters, photos of famous people, movies and television characters, games or currency all may have very strict reproduction rights.

Permission You can’t use material that belongs to someone else without permission For copyright and trademark material, you must get permission from the owner to publish it in the yearbook. Your yearbook cannot print material without knowing thay you have gotten permission to use it. The permission must be gotten in writing from the company. For example Coke, or Nike. This also includes sports teams, you need to write the team and ask permission to use their logos.

Student Press Law Center 1101 Wilson Blvd. Suite 1910 Arlington, VA 22209 (703) 807-1904 Web: Http://www.splc.org Email: splc@splc.org For information on legal issues for student publications you can contact the Student Law Center

Model Release If a picture is going to be used for commercial purposes, such as an advertisement for a business, you need to get a model release from everyone in the picture. Any students under 18 must have the releases signed by a parent or guardian.

Key Terms Copyright: Protects the individual’s right to control the use of intellectual property. Applies to books, newspapers, magazines, literature, music, lyrics, plays, choreography, pictures, photos, sculptures, graphics, movies, audiovisual works and sound recordings. Without release from the owner, it is best to assume that all published works are protected by copyright law.

Libel: A false printed statement of fact that attacks a person’s reputation or good name. Malice: Knowledge that the information was false, or reckless disregard of whether it was false or not. Public figures/officials must prove malice to recover damages.

Public Figures/Officials: Obscenity: Is a form of speech unprotected by the Constitution. The Supreme Court defines obscenity as something by community standards that arouses sexual desire, depicts sexual conduct in a patently offensive way, and lacks serious literary, artistic political or scientific value. Public Figures/Officials: A person in the public spotlight such as a rock star, movie star, or an elected official. A public figure can only claim damages in a libel suit if the public figure can prove the journalist acted in malice or with reckless disregard for the truth.

Privacy: Invasion of privacy is another form of expression unprotected by the Constitution. Every person has a right to privacy unless the right is waived. If a journalist or photographer gains unwelcome entry into a private place such as a private home, a restroom or locker room, that is intrusion. If a person is in a public place such as a city part, the person should have no expectation of privacy.

Trademark: A word, name, symbol, device or any combination of these items used to identify a product by a manufacturer. Most trademarks carry one of these symbols: ® ™ These materials cannot be used for any commercial purpose without trademark infringement. You can use a trademark to identify a product itself. You can’t use a trademark as a theme without getting permission.