Senate bill introduced to put cameras in U.S. Supreme Court

The U.S. Senate is considering a bi-partisan bill to allow the televising of Supreme Court sessions. C-SPAN and others are asking the Court for permission to televise five and a half hours of oral arguments on the federal health care law at the end of March. -db From C-SPAN, February 9, 2012. Full story  

Federal court experiment premiers with video of Tennessee hearing

The federal courts’ test of  cameras in the courtroom began July 21 in a hearing for a preliminary injunction in Tennessee. The test program,  approved by the U.S. Judicial Conference last year,  allows court-operated cameras to film civil proceedings in 14 federal trial courts. The July 21 proceedings were posted online after the hearing. Writing [...]

Ninth circuit appeals court allows live broadcast of Prop 8 hearing

The live broadcast of the appeal proceedings in the U.S. Court of Appeals (9th Cir.) on Prop 8, the initiative banning same-sex marriage,  reached a wide audience including at least 17 law schools. -db The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press December 7, 2010 By Derek Green The U.S. Court of Appeals in San [...]

Newspaper industry pushing for greater access and openness to California’s courts

The California Newspaper Publishers Association has joined with the Los Angeles Times, the New York Times Co. and the Association Press to endorse reforms favorable to the media in a draft from the state Bench-Bar-Media Committee. -db California Newspaper Publishers Association November 1, 2010 The newspaper industry has filed comments with the Judicial Council on [...]

U.S. Supreme Court: Justice Alito cites ‘observer effect’ in opposing cameras in court

Supreme Court Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. said in a Des Moines, Iowa speech that he opposed televising court action because lawyers would play to the cameras. -db ABA Journal October 1, 2010 By Debra Cassens Weiss Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. opposes televised Supreme Court arguments, and he explained why on Thursday: Lawyers would [...]

Kagan renews call for cameras in Supreme Court

Cnet News says the time has come for the Supreme Court to join the 21st Century and allow live streaming video of oral arguments. -db Cnet News Commentary June 30, 2010 By Declan McCullagh The idea of opening up U.S. Supreme Court oral arguments to cameras received a welcome endorsement this week from Elena Kagan, [...]

Federal courts rule out broadcast of closing arguments in California same-sex marriage trial

A federal court will not include California’s same-sex marriage trial in its pilot program to broadcast civil proceedings contrary to recent media reports. -db The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press March 9, 2010 By Curry Andrews A federal court in San Francisco announced on Friday that it is not planning to broadcast closing [...]

Supreme Court delays broadcast of California same-sex marriage trial

The federal trial on California’s same-sex marriage ban will open Monday without cameras so that the U.S. Supreme Court has enough time to consider whether to allow the taping of the trial. The court’s order will be in effect until Wednesday, January 13. -DB First Amendment Center January 11, 2010 By Mark Sherman WASHINGTON, D.C. — [...]