GA Federal Judge Bans Courtroom Tweeting
A federal judge in Georgia has banned twittering from the courtroom as a violation of Rule 53 which prohibits broadcasting of proceedings to the public. The opinion is here.
the Court finds that the contemporaneous transmission of electronic messages from the courtroom describing the trial proceedings, and the dissemination of those messages in a manner such that they are widely and instantaneously accessible to the general public, falls within the definition of “broadcasting” as used in Rule 53. Therefore, this type of broadcasting is prohibited under Rule 53, unless the application of Rule 53 is unconstitutional because it unduly restricts the freedom of the press under the First Amendment.
By that rationale, live-blogging trial would also be prohibited. Other courts have had no problem with it, e.g., the Scooter Libby and Joe Nacchio trials. The 10th Circuit even allowed live-blogging of oral arguments in the Nacchio appeal. [More...]
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