Important Concepts
in Journalism

Actual Malice: A) Publishing a story that you know to be false. B) The standard of proof that libel defendants must meet if they are all-purpose public officials or all-purpose public figures; or if they are limited public officials or limited public figures and the subject is the one for which they are known.

Censorship: When the government forbids or restricts an act of expression, be it spoken, written, published or otherwise communicated. When a work is censored beforehand, that is known as preventive censorship, or prior restraint. This is allowed in the United States, but only rarely. When the author or publisher is fined or jailed afterward, it is known as punitive censorship. This is generally considered unconstitutional.

Clear and Present Danger: A) An immediate and direct threat posed by a piece of journalism, a speech or an Internet posting. Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, who coined the phrase, used the example of yelling fire in a crowded theater. Another example would be publishing troop movements during wartime. B) The standard that is applied when a judge decides whether to grant a request for prior restraint.

First Amendment: Amendment to the U.S. Constitution that guarantees freedom of speech and of the press. Also forbids the establishment of a government religion and guarantees the rights to petition for a redress of grievances and peaceably assemble. See text here.

Libel: A) Published material that unjustly defames someone. B) The five parts of a libel claim are that 1) the material was published, 2) it is defamatory, 3) it was about the plaintiff, 4) it is false, and 5) the defendant is at fault. In North Carolina, the fault standard is either negligence or actual malice, depending on the plaintiff's status as a private or public person.

Limited Public Figure: A person who is well known on a specific subject, such as death-with-dignity advocate Dr. Jack Kevorkian. Under libel law, limited public figures must prove actual malice if the subject is the one for which they are famous, but only have to prove negligence if it is not. Thus, Kevorkian would have the more stringent standard if a newspaper printed a libelous story about his medical license, and the looser one if it were about his driver's license.

Marketplace of Ideas:

Negligence: A) Failure to take the care a reasonable person would under reasonable circumstances. B) The standard of proof that libel plaintiffs must meet in North Carolina if they are private citizens, or limited public figures or limited public officials and the story was not about the subject for which they are known.

Prior Restraint: When a judge prevents an article from being published, bars a person from giving a speech or otherwise limits the exercise of First Amendment rights beforehand. Also known as preventive censorship. In the United States, prior restraint is considered unconstitutional unless the government can show that allowing it would present a "clear and present danger."

Public Official: An elected official who holds a highly public position with wide-ranging responsibilities and powers. Examples would be a president, Supreme Court justice, governor or even mayor. Under libel law, public officials must prove the higher standard of actual malice when suing, regardless of the content.

Public Figure:

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