The Journalist Abroad: Legal Risks and Dilemmas

A VICE News team covering a protest group in Turkey is arrested for aiding a terrorist organization. A BBC reporter in Thailand is accused of criminal defamation for a story on a property scam. Whether you are a foreign correspondent reporting on hate speech in France, a journalist covering conflicts and protests in some of the world's hotspots, a sportswriter at the Summer Olympics in Japan, or part of a Panama Papers-style global reporting consortium, journalists abroad confront unique legal risks and dilemmas. This seminar will take students around the globe to examine major laws and cases involving freedom of expression and of the press that shape the practice of journalism within and across borders. It will examine international legal trends in topics journalists need to know to avoid themselves becoming the story, including defamation, privacy, national security, anti-terrorism, and more, and build on foundations laid in JOUR 401-0-20/21 (Ethics & Law of Journalism). The seminar will also address global regulatory controversies arising from the internet's impact on journalism. Readings and other class materials will be provided. A final project examining an issue or event can be an article (such as a profile of a jailed journalist), op-ed, case-study, audio, video or graphic.