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TOLEDO, Ohio (Tribune News Service) In what was seen as a victory for First Amendment rights, the U.S. government agreed Thursday to pay The Blade $18,000 for seizing the cameras of a photographer and deleting photographs taken outside the Lima tank plant last year.

In turn, The Blade agreed to dismiss the lawsuit it filed April 4 in U.S. District Court on behalf of photographer Jetta Fraser and reporter Tyrel Linkhorn against Charles T. Hagel, then the U.S. Secretary of Defense; Lt. Col. Matthew Hodge, commandant of the Joint Systems Manufacturing Center, and the military police officers involved in the March 28, 2014, incident.

Fritz Byers, attorney for The Blade, said the settlement was made under the First Amendment Privacy Protection Act, which prohibits the government, in connection with the investigation of a criminal offense, from searching or seizing any work product materials possessed by a journalist.

The harassment and detention of The Blades reporter and photographer, the confiscation of their equipment, and the brazen destruction of lawful photographs cannot be justified by a claim of military authority or by the supposed imperatives of the national security state, Mr. Byers said.

The Blade is pleased with this resolution of the crucial First Amendment issues at stake in this matter, Mr. Byers said.

John Robinson Block, publisher and editor-in-chief of The Blade, said he was "very happy it's resolved," but wished the government would admit wrongdoing.

"We appear to know more about the U.S. Constitution than responsible federal defense officials. I wish they could admit in this instance, in any instance, that they were wrong and violated our rights."

Blade officials said $5,000 of the settlement would be donated to the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. Based in Arlington, Va., the committee works to protect journalists free speech rights as well as access to public records, meetings, and courtrooms.

The remainder of the settlement will be shared by the Blade staff members detained, and will not be used to pay the newspapers legal fees.

The First Amendment Privacy Protection Act allows those who sue under it to recover a minimum of $1,000 per violation or actual monetary losses.

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Ohio newspaper gets $18,000 from government for deleted photos

The American Civil Liberties Union has come out in support of the Washington Redskins keeping their name, arguing that the U.S. governments decision to strip the NFL team of its trademark protection violates free speech rights granted by the First Amendment.

In an amicus brief filed in federal court on Thursday, the ACLU says the Redskins name is at least problematic, if not outright racist, but nevertheless protected under the U.S. Constitution.

Under the First Amendment, viewpoint-based regulation of private speech is never acceptable, regardless of the controversy of the viewpoint, reads the ACLUs legal brief, obtained by The Wall Street Journal. By scheduling the cancellation of the Redskins trademark because the word expresses a disparaging viewpoint, the government violated the First Amendment.

Pro-Football Inc., the company that owns the Redskins, filed a federal lawsuit in August challenging the U.S. Patent & Trademark Offices ruling, but the agency held that the Redskins name wasnt worthy of federal trademark protection because it disparages Native Americans, The Journal reported.

The ACLU brief called on the federal courts to end this formal system of viewpoint discrimination by issuing a narrow ruling that strikes down those portions of Section 2(a) of the Lanham Act that prohibit registration of immoral, scandalous, or disparag[ing] marks.

ACLU staff attorney Esha Bhandari wrote a subsequent blog post defending the brief.

The Washington Redskins is a name that is offensive and perpetrates racism against Native Americans, she argued. Should it be changed? Yes. But should the government get to make that call? As we told a federal district court yesterday, the answer is no, because the First Amendment protects against government interference in private speech.

The ACLU has a history of defending the speech rights of groups we disagree with, because the First Amendment doesnt protect only popular ideas. The Washington teams choice of name is unfortunate. They should be and are being pressured to change it. But it isnt governments role to pick and choose which viewpoints are acceptable and which are not, Ms. Bhandari said.

See the article here:
ACLU sides with Redskins, deems trademark cancellation unconstitutional

WASHINGTON, DC - Perry Sook, president and CEO of Nexstar Broadcasting, KARK's parent company, will be honored next month by the Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA).

Sook will be honored with the First Amendment Service Award at the 25th annual First Amendment Awards coming up on March 11 in the nation's capital.

The First Amendment Service Award honors professionals in local or network news who work in an off-air, management, largely behind-the-scenes capacity.

Sook successfully built Nexstar Broadcasting from two dozen stations to more than 100, while building and improving news operations across the ever-expanding group.

He founded Nexstar in 1996 for the purpose of acquiring and operating network affiliated television stations in medium-sized markets. Today, the company's stations, websites and partners reach 58 markets or approximately 18.0% of all U.S. television households. Prior to Nexstar, Sook was one of the principals of Superior Communication Group, Inc., which was sold in 1995 to Sinclair Broadcast Group. Before Superior, Sook was President/CEO of Seaway Communication, Inc., owner of network affiliated stations in Bangor, ME and Wausau, WI.

Before being recruited to run Seaway, he worked in the television industry as a General Sales Manager, acting General Manager and National Sales Manager. Sook previously spent five years with Cox Broadcasting, first in local sales in Pittsburgh then at Telerep, Inc., as a National Account Executive. Early in his career, Sook was involved in local TV sales and radio sales. Sook also worked briefly as a television news anchor at the CBS affiliate in Clarksburg, WV.

Sook did his undergraduate work at Ohio University in Athens, OH and was an adjunct professor at Edinboro State University of Pennsylvania. He is a recipient of the NAB/BEA Harold E. Follow Memorial Scholarship, a Board Member of the National Association of Broadcasters, the Television Bureau of Advertising, the NBC Affiliate Board, and a Board Member and Trustee of The Ohio University Foundation.

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National Broadcasting Association to Honor Nexstar's Perry Sook

The Economic Collapse Is Closer Than People Think
Armed Gunmen Attack First Amendment.

By: Nick Dalen

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The Economic Collapse Is Closer Than People Think - Video

Manufacturing Ignorance: UFOs, the First Amendment and National Security - Cat# XCONY
We found the second alien base and we promptly head in. Will it be another slaughter like the last one? --- WANT MORE? --- Subscribe: Free Energy, New Science, Consciousness and the Earth....

By: Kesha Hanki

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Manufacturing Ignorance: UFOs, the First Amendment and National Security - Cat# XCONY - Video