By Jason M. Russell (Rutgers Law Student) Simon Tam, an Asian-American musician, author, speaker, and political activist, applied to the federal government to register the phrase “THE SLANTS” as a trademark to identify and distinguish his rock band. According to Mr. Tam, he chose this phrase to reclaim a racial stereotype, hoping that his use … Continue reading The Lanham Act’s Disparagement Clause is in Trouble…
Category: Blog
Friends Don’t Let Friends Share “Fake News”: FTC Cannot Effectively Regulate “Fake News,” So It’s up to Us to Make News True(ish) Again
By Samuel E. Bordoni-Cowley (Rutgers Law Student) Should we invite the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to extend its reach in regulating online content in the name of stopping the spread of “fake news”? Some scholars might say the marketplace of ideas should not be filtered, others that only public discourse will solve the issue, and … Continue reading Friends Don’t Let Friends Share “Fake News”: FTC Cannot Effectively Regulate “Fake News,” So It’s up to Us to Make News True(ish) Again…
SCOTUS to Rule on Social Media Rights of Sex Offenders
By Jace Brown (Rutgers Law Student) To what extent can states regulate the use of social media by registered sex offenders, without infringing their First Amendment free speech rights? That is the issue to be decided in Packingham v. North Carolina, 777 S.E.2d 738 (N.C. 2016), which has recently been granted certiorari by the Supreme Court. … Continue reading SCOTUS to Rule on Social Media Rights of Sex Offenders…
The $2.2 Million Lawn Sign and the First Amendment
By Christopher J. D’Alessandro (Rutgers Law Student) It’s difficult to imagine how a political lawn sign could come with a price tag of $2,263.489. What could make a flimsy cardboard sign for a Paterson, New Jersey mayoral candidate warrant such an astronomical price? Well let’s do a simple calculation and see how the variables add … Continue reading The $2.2 Million Lawn Sign and the First Amendment…
Paff v. Galloway: Defining “Public Record” in the Digital Age
Brooke Lewis ’17 The New Jersey Supreme Court has recently decided to hear a case that will set open records policy in the emerging world of big data. While our government’s transition to the digital world has brought about new levels of speed and efficiency, it may have also created an unintended “black box.” Information … Continue reading Paff v. Galloway: Defining “Public Record” in the Digital Age…