Didn't Think I'd Forget About The Second Quiz, Did You?

Greetings:

The instructions for the second quiz are the same as for the first: Answer five of the following six questions in a sentence or two. More than a paragraph means you've wandered off a bit. Please make sure to number your responses, which should be sent to me via email no later than Friday, March 16 at 5 p.m.

Good luck, and if I don't get a chance to tell you tomorrow, it's been a blast for me this term. Stay in touch, and make sure you always ask why your mayor and town council are going into executive session!

Here goes:

1. You attend a press conference held by Governor Rendell to discuss a possible school voucher program. During his remarks, the governor calls Philadelphia Mayor John Street "a thorn in his side" on the issue, and says he's been lying to Philadelphia residents about what such a plan would mean. He goes on to call the Mayor "a desperate pathological liar, recklessly striking fear into the hearts of residents." You report the story. Street sues you and your paper for libel. What's your defense? How do you make sure that defense will stand up in court?

2. You've worked for the last six months on a story about university officials taking kickbacks from computer companies to guarantee that their products find their way into said university's classrooms and offices. The local District Attorney wants to move forward with a grand jury indictment, and needs your information. You refuse to turn it over, even after receiving a subpoena. What factors will the judge in the case explore in making a decision about whether you should furnish the information to the D.A.?

3. You're covering yet another semi-boring meeting of the Podunkville City Council. Suddenly, Podunkville Mayor Ron "Fozzie Bear (I had much longer hair in college)" Bishop, gets up from his seat and announces that for the next 30 minutes, Council will meet in another room, without an audience or reporters present. What should you do? What should Bishop do?

4. You learn that the U.S. Department of Justice has in its possession audiotapes of 911 calls from many folks who tragically perished in the World Trade Center during the September 11, 2001 attacks. After failing to obtain them from your usual sources, you decide to file a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. How likely is it that DOJ, now headed up by U.S. Attorney General Alberto "We Fired Those U.S. Attorneys for Poor Performance" Gonzales, will comply with the request?

5. You've been assigned to cover an animal rights protest at the Christiana Mall. Police are on hand. You try to ask a question of a protester, but a police officer intercepts you and asks you to stay behind the barricades that have been set up to manage the protest. You comply with her request. The officer then asks you to move again - this time to the parking lot, where you roll tape and being doing your report. This time, the officer asks you to work under the mall's sign on the other side of an access road, near the on-ramp to northbound I-95. This time, you refuse to move. The police lock you up for trespassing. Will your conviction stand? Cite case law in your answer.

6. Let's say that three of the protesters now face a criminal trial in federal court in Wilmington, DE. Let's also say that their actions - beyond the protest - have received a great deal of news media coverage from folks like you; so much so that they've become very well known in the community. Not liked, but well known. Their final act was freeing all of the animals at the Brandywine Zoo. The judge in the case is, just for laughs, my brother, Richard "Skippy" (his nickname as a child) Bishop. He immediately issues a restrictive order barring the publication or broadcast of any information about the case.

Was such a step necessary? What else could he have done? What could the protesters' lawyer have asked for instead? What is Judge Skippy trying to protect through his action? Your station wants you there, broadcasting live reports about the trial - what would your argument be?


SUPER BONUS QUESTION: Who lost the most in the Scooter Libby case?