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CM 9324 - The Law and Ethics of Mass Communication

Resources, search guidance, and information to assist students in successfully completing requirements for this course.

Interlibrary Loan

If our library does not have a book or article you need, St. Mary's University students, faculty and staff may order it through Interlibrary Loan (ILL).

Don't forget to ask a librarian for help if you have questions. Students, faculty, and staff of the Law School must contact the Law Library for Interlibrary Loan services.

TexShare Card

TexShare provides a statewide card program through which current St. Mary's students, faculty, and staff may check out materials, in person, from participating TexShare libraries.

To get a free TexShare card, complete the online application linked below. Once your application has been received and a card has been generated, you will receive an email directing you to pick up the TexShare card at the Blume Library Circulation Counter. With a TexShare card, you may directly borrow books, music, movies and more from any other participating TexShare library, just as if you were a card-holder there. TexShare cards are valid for one semester only. You will need to get a new card each semester. You must present a current TexShare card, your St. Mary's Rattler ID card, and a photo ID (if your St. Mary's ID does not include a photo) at the library from which you wish to borrow materials.

TexShare Card Application

For borrowers from other institutions:

Borrowers from other institutions can pay TexShare fines, assessed by the Blume Library, with a credit card using our online payment form.

Personal Information Form

Blume Library - TexShare Card Program Lending Policy Elements
TexShare Card Program Lending Policy Elements for the Louis J. Blume Library at St. Mary's University.

Week 6: Foundations of Freedom and Prior Restraint

Anderson, D. A. (1983). The origins of the press clause. UCLA Law Review, 30(3), 455-541. Retrieved from Hein Online.
Powe, L. A. S. (1991). The fourth estate and the Constitution: Freedom of the press in America. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.
Also available from the Law Library
Rabban, D. M. (1981). The First Amendment in its forgotten years. Yale Law Journal, 90(3), 514-595. Retrieved from HeinOnline.
Lofton, J. (1980). The press as guardian of the First Amendment. Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina Press.
Available via the Internet Archive.
Teeter, D. L., Jr. (1992). The First Amendment at its bicentennial: Necessary but not sufficient? Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly 69(1), 18-27. doi: 10.1177/107769909206900103
Available via ILL.
Nye, R. B. (1964). Fettered freedom: Civil liberties and the slavery controversy, 1830-1860. East Lansing, MI: Michigan State University Press.
Available through the Internet Archive.
Peterson, H. C., & Fite, G. C. (1957). Opponents of war, 1917-1918. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press.
Available at Trinity University, UTSA and via ILL.

Week 7: Corporate and Commercial Speech

Week 8: Electronic Mass Media and Telecommunication

Le Duc, D. R., & McCain, T. A. (1970). The federal radio commission in federal court: Origins of broadcast regulatory doctrines. Journal of Broadcasting, 14(4), 393-410. Retrieved from HeinOnline.
Kahn, F. J. (Ed.) (1984). Documents of American broadcasting. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Available in print at the Law Library.
Knauer, L. T., Machtley, R. K., & Lynch, T. M. (1996). Telecommunications Act handbook: A complete reference for business. Rockville, MD: Government Institutes.
Available via the Internet Archive.
Le Duc, D. R. (1987). Beyond broadcasting: Patterns in policy and law. New York, NY: Longman.
Available via ILL.
Cole, B. G., & Oettinger, M. (1978). Reluctant regulators: The FCC and the broadcast audience. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley Pub. Co.
Available via the Internet Archive.

Week 10: Indecency and Obscenity

Clor, H. M. (1969). Obscenity and public morality: Censorship in a liberal society. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
Emerson, T. I. (1970). The system of freedom of expression. New York, NY: Random House.
Available in print at the Law Library.

United States. Attorney General's Commission on Pornography. (1986). Attorney general's commission on pornography: Final report. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice.
Commonly known as the "Meese Commission report." Available in print from the Blume and Law Libraries. Available online via the Hathi Trust Digital Library.
Strossen, N. (1995). Defending pornography: Free speech, sex, and the fight for women's rights. New York, NY: Scribner.

Week 11: The Law of Privacy and the Media

Freedman, W. (1987). The right of privacy in the computer age. New York, NY: Quorum Books.
Westin, A. F. (1967). Privacy and freedom. New York, NY: Atheneum.
Also available in print at the Law Library.

Week 12: Reporting the Judicial Process

Edenhofer, L. E. (1966). The impartial jury--Twentieth century dilemma: Some solutions to the conflict between free press and fair trial. Cornell Law Quarterly, 51(2), 306-327. Retrieved from HeinOnline.

Week 13: Access to Public Records, Meetings, and Private Places

Langley, M., & Levine, L. (1988). Broken promises. Columbia Journalism Review 27 (July/August): 21-24.
Available via ILL.
Lewis, A. (1976, September 16). 'Congress shall make no law...' New York Times, p.39. Retrieved from ProQuest Historical Newspapers.
Teeter, D. L., Jr. & Singer, S. G. (1978-1979). Search warrants in newsrooms: Some aspects of the impact of Zurcher v. The Stanford Daily. Kentucky Law Journal 67(4), 847-866. Retrieved from HeinOnline.
Entman, R. M. (1989). Democracy without citizens: Media and the decay of American politics. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Available via the Internet Archive.
Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press (RCFP)
The RCFP provides free legal advice, resources, support and advocacy to protect the First Amendment and Freedom of Information rights of journalists working in areas where U.S. law applies, regardless of the medium in which their work appears.
Bouchard, R. F., & Franklin, J. D. (1986). Guidebook to the Freedom of Information and Privacy acts. 2nd ed. New York, NY: C. Boardman Co.
Available via ILL.
Dienes, C. T., Levine, L., & Lind, R. C. (1997). Newsgathering and the law. Charlottesville, VA: Michie.
Available via ILL. Pay special attention to Chapter 13, "The Means of Newsgathering," pp. 488-599.

Week 14: Intellectual Property

Bishop, A. N. (1964). Fair use of copyrighted books. Houston Law Review 2(2), 206-221. Retrieved from HeinOnline.
United States Copyright Office
Edward, M. R. S., & Lazowska, S. (1968). Photocopying, copyright, and the librarian. American Documentation, 19(2), 123-130.
Available via ILL.
Middleton, K. R. (1979). Copyright and the journalist: New powers for the free-lancer. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 56(1), 38-42. doi: 10.1177/107769907905600106
Available via ILL.
Zegas, A. L. (1980). Personal letters: A dilemma for copyright and privacy law. Rutgers Law Review, 33(1), 134-164. Retrieved from HeinOnline.

Last Updated: Jun 13, 2025 2:00 PM
URL: https://lib.stmarytx.edu/cm9324
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Subjects: Communication Studies

Tags: media law