General Information
Law of Electronic Media 91:306, Fall 1997
Coordinates: E-mail: 1035393@mcimail.com Voice: 319-337-5555 (with 24-hour answering machine, where all messages should be left) Postal: Box 1876, Iowa City IA 52244-1876 Web page: http://soli.inav.net/~njohnson Assistant: Rita Jansen, Room 421, 335-9055.
Time and Place: Class meets 14 Wednesday evenings, 6:30-8:30 p.m., Room 125 BLB, August 27 through December 3, except for November 26 (Thanksgiving). The final exam is scheduled for Thursday, December 18, 8:30 a.m. (Of course, confirm that prior to the exam.)
Casebook: Carter, Franklin and Wright, The First Amendment and the Fifth Estate (4th ed. 1996) -- available in the ISBA Bookstore, Room 218 BLB.
Purpose: The "information economy" now constitutes one-half our gross domestic product. This course is designed to help you identify, and think through, some of the legal and public policy issues of the Information Age. Law of Electronic Media (LEM) is one of a cluster of information age courses including Copyrights, Cyberspace Law Seminar, First Amendment seminars, Entertainment Law, and Patents and Trademarks -- among others. (None is a prerequisite.)
Assignments: See the "Reading Assignments" memo. Your "Personal Bio" is due by September 2.
Exams, Grades: To provide the instructor and students with feedback and incentives, there may be (with advance notice) brief quizzes. The final will be an open book essay and closed book multiple choice exam. Ten percent of the grade will be based on class participation.
Attendance: You are encouraged to make the effort to be prepared for, attend, and participate in, every class. The ABA, AALS and College of Law rules require students to be in "regular attendance." For this course, "regular attendance" will be 75 per cent (11 of the 14 class sessions). Those attending less than that (whether "excused" or "unexcused") may be dropped.
Reservation: An effort will be made to provide advance notice of assignments and exams, respond to reasonable suggestions, and minimize changes. But the instructor reserves the right to make changes believed to be of benefit to students.
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