NYU's Media Talks - Online Video
Crossing the Line?
Timely discussion about such topics as current media behavior, whether the rules and ethics of journalism apply to bloggers, and what, if any, right do celebrities and political figures have to privacy? And, just who is a public figure?
The event was hosted by famed law professor Arthur Miller in the “Socratic dialogue” style he popularized on PBS’s Fred Friendly seminar series. This is the latest in the NYU Media Talk series, hosted by the Center for Publishing at the New York University School of Continuing and Professional Studies.
PANELISTS
David Carr, media columnist, The New York Times - David Carr writes a column for the Monday Business section of The New York Times, focusing on media issues including print, digital, film, radio, and television. He also works as a general assignment reporter for the Culture section of The Times, covering all aspects of popular culture. During the Oscar season, Carr writes a daily blog called The Carpetbagger. For the past 25 years, he has been writing about media as it intersects with business, culture, and government. Prior to joining The Times in 2002, Carr was a contributing writer for The Atlantic Monthly and New York Magazine and the media writer for Inside.com. Before coming to New York City, he served for five years as editor of the Washington City Paper, an alternative weekly in Washington, D.C. From 1993 to 1995, he was editor of the Twin Cities Reader, a Minneapolis-based alternative weekly. Carr’s bestselling book, The Night of the Gun, a reported memoir of addiction and recovery, was published by Simon & Schuster.
Jim Kelly, managing editor of Time Inc. - As managing editor of Time Inc., Jim Kelly works closely with the editor-in-chief, helping to ensure that the company’s 1,500 journalists adhere to the highest standards of their craft. Before assuming his post in 2006, Kelly served as managing editor of Time, the world's largest news magazine. During his tenure there, Time won four National Magazine awards, for special issues on 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina, a photographic essay on Darfur, and the 2006 award for General Excellence. In 2004, Time received an Emmy for its contribution to the ABC News series, “Iraq: Where Things Stand.” The son of a New York City policeman and a college librarian, Kelly graduated from Regis High School in Manhattan and Princeton University. He currently serves on the Board of Visitors of the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
Judge Andrew P. Napolitano, senior judicial analyst, Fox News - Andrew P. Napolitano is the youngest life-tenured Superior Court judge in the history of the State of New Jersey. For eleven years, he was Adjunct Professor of Law at Seton Hall Law School. Judge Napolitano returned to private law practice in 1995, and has been the senior judicial analyst for the Fox News Channel (FNC) since 1998. He broadcasts nationwide on FNC and on the Fox Business Network every weekday; he co-hosts “Fox & Friends” and “Brian and the Judge,” heard daily on Fox News Radio. Judge Napolitano also lectures nationally on civil liberties and human freedom. He is the author of Constitutional Chaos: What Happens When the Government Breaks Its Own Laws (Nelson Current, 2004), the New York Times bestseller The Constitution in Exile: How the Federal Government Has Seized Power by Rewriting the Supreme Law of the Land (Nelson Current, 2006), and A Nation of Sheep (Thomas Nelson, 2007). He graduated from Princeton University in 1972 and from the University of Notre Dame Law School in 1975.
Liz Smith, columnist, The New York Post - In 1949, Liz Smith arrived in Manhattan from her native Texas with $50 to her name and no ticket home. The next morning, she leaned out of her modest hotel room window and asked her Texas friends, “Which way is town?” She eventually found her way, working as a proofreader for Newsweek, an editor for Modern Screen, and a press agent on the road for Broadway shows. She was a producer for Mike Wallace on CBS radio and for NBC TV. In the 60s, Smith was a ghostwriter for the Hearst society column, “Cholly Knickerbocker,” and later the entertainment editor of Cosmopolitan Magazine. By 1976, Smith had become the columnist for the New York Daily News and appeared on NBC TV’s “Live at Five.” Smith joined the L.A. Times Mirror syndicate in 1991; her gossip column is now syndicated in more than 70 newspapers, including The New York Post. In September 2000, her memoir, Natural Blonde, was published by Hyperion Press and became an immediate bestseller. This was followed by a food memoir, Dishing, published by Simon & Schuster. Smith is also a founder of the website www.wowowow.com, which offers sophisticated daily content for women over 40. She is a graduate of the University of Texas.
Sherrese M. Smith, vice president and general counsel, Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive - Sherrese Smith is vice president and general counsel of Washingtonpost. Newsweek Interactive, The Washington Post Company’s Internet and new media subsidiary. Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive publishes Washingtonpost.com, Newsweek.com, Budgettravel.com, Slate.com, TheRoot.com, and Loudounextra.com. At WPNI, Smith focuses on matters pertaining to copyright, trademark, Internet, and media law, as well as licensing and commercial transactions. Previously, she worked at Arnold & Porter in Washington, D.C., where she was a member of the intellectual property practice group, and at OfficeMax, Inc., where she focused on a variety of intellectual property issues. She is a lecturer for the American Bar Association, Practicing Law Institute, and various continuing education programs on copyright, media, publishing, the Internet, and trademark. In 2007, Smith was named Outstanding In-House Counsel for the District of Columbia’s Chapter of the Association of Corporate Counsel Practice areas. She holds a J.D. from Northwestern University’s School of Law and a B.A. in Finance from the University of South Carolina.
MODERATOR
Arthur R. Miller, university professor, New York University; director of Public Dialogues, New York University School of Continuing and Professional Studies - From 1971–2007, Arthur R. Miller taught at Harvard Law School, where he was the Bruce Bromley Professor of Law. Professor Miller is the author of more than 40 books and many articles on civil procedure, copyright and unfair competition, remedies, and privacy. He is also widely known for his work on television and other media. Notably, he is the moderator for the Fred Friendly Seminar series on PBS, which features “Socratic Dialogues” among thought leaders from the worlds of politics, media, academia, and medicine on important legal and social issues. Professor Miller received his B.A. in 1955 from the University of Rochester, where he was elected Phi Beta Kappa. He received his law degree from Harvard Law School, magna cum laude, in 1958.