COLLEGE OF MASS COMMUNICATION
Middle Tennessee State University
Fall 2009
Welcome to your first MC 6300 exam. This exam consists of multiple
choice/true-false questions. There is only one right answer for
each question.
This exam contains a number of “closed universe” story problems. Do not
read more into the fact pattern than is presented.
Submit your answers via e-mail to lburriss@mtsu.edu. Do not submit
a copy of the exam; just numbers 1-50 with the appropriate letter
beside each number. Do not use an attachment. Put the answers
in the body of the e-mail. Send a copy of your answers back to yourself.
Answers are due by 11:59:59 tonight (Thursday)
Good luck!
1. How did the government justify stopping the Pentagon Papers?
A. The papers dug into the private life of President
Kennedy.
B. The papers could hurt national security.
C. The papers were stolen by a Soviet agent.
D. The papers were the work of a traitor.
E. The government was being denied royalties.
2. According to the instructor, the trial court deals with
A. Fact
B. Law
C. Both A and B
3. According to the instructor, an appellate court deals with
A. Fact
B. Law
C. Both A and B
4. Common law is
A. Law enacted by legislatures
B. Judge-made law
C. Law enacted by administrative agencies
D. The same thing as equity
5. The Progressive case and the Pentagon Papers cases are
similar in that both deal with
A. None of the below
B. Gag orders
C. Libel
D. Prior restraint
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Use the following answers for the next series of questions. Some
answers may be used more than once; others not used at all.
A. Schenck v. U.S.
B. Gitlow v. New York
C. Smith Act
D. Near v. Minnesota
6. Was a law passed by Congress, not a court case
7. Even if a statement is false, it probably cannot be
suppressed
8. Freedom of speech is protected from state action by the 14th
Amendment
9. Outlined what you can, or cannot, do or say if you want to
overthrow the government
10. Said the Bill of Rights applies to the states, not just the
Federal government
11. Outlined the Clear & Present Danger Doctrine
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12. The person bringing the lawsuit is the
A Plaintiff
B. Defendant
C. Appellant
D. Appellee
13. The person who is sued is the
A Plaintiff
B. Defendant
C. Appellant
D. Appellee
14. In terms of legal philosophy and First Amendment theory,
did The New York Times win or lose the Pentagon Paper case?
A. Win
B. Lose
15. This case said that false statements have just as much
protection as true statements.
A. Pentagon Papers
B. Near v. Minnesota
C. Progressive
D. Kovacs v. Cooper
16. You think a local supermarket has been using deceptive
advertising. You write a letter to the store asking them
to stop. The store writes you a letter that says, in
essence, "Buzz off!" You decide to sue the store to make
them stop running the ad. Please trace one possible avenue
to move this suit to the U.S. Supreme Court.
A. Federal District Court -> Federal Court of Appeals
– > U.S. Supreme Court
B. Chancery Court -> State Supreme Court -> Federal
District Court -> Federal Appeals Court -> U.S. Supreme
Court
C. Federal Trade Commission -> U.S. Supreme Court
D. Federal Trade Commission -> State Supreme Court -> U.S.
Supreme Court
17. In the Pentagon Papers case Justice Marshall made it clear
that courts should not do what legislatures had failed to
do. He further said that he would have no trouble
sustaining a judgment against the newspapers if Congress
passed a law prohibiting them from publishing classified
national security information. Justice Marshall was making
what kind of argument
A. Absolutist
B. Preferred position
C. Presumption of Constitutionality
D. Over-Breadth
18. After the first series of Pentagon Papers articles was
published in The New York Times, the paper halted
publication because of a ruling in the District of Columbia
Circuit Court of Appeals.
A. True, because the paper was bound by the ruling in the
District of Columbia Court of Appeals
B. False, because the District of Columbia Circuit Court
of Appeals ruled The New York Times could publish
C. True, because the District of Columbia Circuit Court of
Appeals overturned a ruling by the New York Federal
District Court
D. False, because the District of Columbia Federal
District Court ruled The New York Times could publish
E. False, The New York Times did in fact halt publication,
but for different reasons than those stated in the
answers above
19. We talked about the three equal branches of government, but
said which branch is "more equal" than the others.
A. Executive
B. Legislative
C. Judicial
20. Explain the significance of the Marbury v. Madison
decision.
A. The court ruled it had the right to determine the
constitutionality of the law.
B. The court ruled it had the right to determine the
extent of seditious libel
C. The court it had the right to determine the limits of
government control of the media
D. None of the above
21. According to the instructor, _____ tells us what we can and
cannot do, but _____ tells us what we ought or ought not to
do.
A. Law / Ethics
B. Ethics / Law
22. What is the difference between civil law and criminal law?
A. Civil law helps settle disputes between individuals;
criminal law settles disputes between the individual
and the state.
B. Civil law helps settle disputes between individuals;
criminal law deals with offenses against society
C. In criminal law someone is prosecuted in the name of
the state; in civil law, one individual is prosecuting
another individual
D. Criminal laws are enacted by the state; civil laws are
enacted by the Federal government
23. In colonial times, English law allowed governors to prevent
newspapers from printing material damaging to the Crown.
Such laws express the principle of
A. Seditious Libel
B. Political propaganda
C. Treason
D. Social Responsibility press theory
24. The theory that assumes legislative acts are constitutional
unless they restrict the First Amendment
A. Absolutist
B. Preferred Position
C. Presumption of Constitutionality
D. Rational Relationship
25. Among the following, which is the best single summary
concerning limitations on freedom of the press (that is,
all media) in the United States?
A. There are no limitations on newspapers; all other media
are in some way constrained
B. The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution has
effectively prevented government from limiting freedom
in any way
C. The press and other media are in fact limited by a
complex set of formal and informal political, as well
as economic restraints
26. If you are issued a court order that is clearly
unconstitutional, you are not under any obligation to obey
it while it is being appealed.
A. True
B. False
27. You are the defendant in a civil matter. If you lose the
case you could end up in jail.
A. True
B. False
C. True if the proof against you is “beyond a reasonable
doubt”
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Use the following answers for the next series of questions
A. Strict Scrutiny
B. Intermediate scrutiny
C. Rational basis
28. Used when a fundamental right is at issue
29. The state passes a law that you claim infringes on the
First Amendment. The state will want the judge to apply
this test.
30. The state passes a law you claim violates the First
Amendment. You want the judge to apply this test.
31. If the state passes a law you claim violates the First
Amendment, and if the judge uses this test, the law will
almost always fail based on the notion of “over-breadth.”
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
32. Marbury vs. Madison
A. Was the first libel case tried in the United States
B. Established modern privacy law
C. Established the ability of the U.S. Supreme Court to
decide what the constitution means
D. None of the above
33. The federal court of appeals for Tennessee is in
A. Cincinnati
B. Nashville
C. Atlanta
D. Memphis
34. Prior restraint is a form of information control. It is
accomplished by
A. Suppression of publications in anticipation of wrongful
publishing
B. Putting printers in prison for what they print
C. Using existing state law
D. Using existing federal law
35. Justice William Blackstone created the concept of
A. Prior Restraint
B. The "Chilling Effect"
C. Libel per se
D. Subsequent Punishment
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Please use the following answers for the next series of questions
A. Constitutions
B. Common law
C. Statutory law
D. Administrative law
36. Promulgated by the FCC
37. Judge-made law
38. Enacted by legislative bodies
39. Offers basic guidelines and philosophical positions
40. Based on the notion of stare decisis
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
41. Two opposing hate groups, both known for violent
confrontation, want to march around the town square in
downtown Smyrnaboro. The city council, in emergency
session, passes an ordinance forbidding marches by groups
that promote “immoderate or intemperate speech or actions.”
The ordinance is unconstitutional.
A. True, because it is overbroad
B. False, because it only targets certain kinds of speech
C. False, because it only targets speech that offends the
local community standard
D. True, based on Near v. Minnesota
E. True, based on Gitlow v. New York
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Please use the following quotations and citation for the next series of questions
"[W]e consider this case against the background of a profound national commitment
to the principle that debate on public issues should be uninhibited, robust, and
wide-open, and that it may well include vehement, caustic, and sometimes
unpleasantly sharp attacks on government and public officials....The judgment of
the Supreme Court of Alabama is reversed and the case is remanded to that court
for further proceedings not inconsistent with this opinion."
"Justice Black, with whom Justice Douglas joins (concurring) ...I base my vote to
reverse on the belief that the First and Fourteenth Amendments not merely 'delimit'
a State's power to award damages to 'public officials against critics of their
official conduct' but completely prohibit a State from exercising such power....Unlike
the Court, therefore, I vote to reverse exclusively on the ground that the Times and
the individual defendants had an absolute, unconditional constitutional right to
publish in the Times advertisement their criticisms of Montgomery agencies and
officials." New York Times v. Sullivan, 376 US 254, 270 et seq. (1964).
42. Who is bringing this case to this court?
A. The New York Times
B. Sullivan
C. The U.S government
D. A state government
43. Who is the plaintiff/appellant in this case?
A. The New York Times
B. Sullivan
C. The U.S government
D. A state government
44. According to the citation, this decision is found in
A. The U.S. Code
B. U.S Reports
C. U.S. Supreme Court Reports
D. Code of Federal Regulations
45. The number "376" refers to
A. The page on which the decision begins
B. The volume number
C. The paragraph number
46. This quotation is found on page _____
A. 254
B. 270
C. 376
47. This case came on appeal from the Alabama Supreme Court.
Who probably won at that level?
A. New York Times
B. Sullivan
C. You can't tell from the material presented above
48. Who won at the U.S. Supreme Court level?
A. The New York Times
B. Sullivan
C. The U.S government
D. Alabama
E. You can't tell from the quotes
49. Justice Black
A. Agreed with the Supreme Court's decision
B. Disagreed with the Supreme Court's decision
C. Voted to uphold the Alabama Supreme Court
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
50. Even though it has been outlawed in every civilized country
in the world, the practice of cat juggling continues
unabated in a few countries where it is not banned. You
recently visited one of these countries and witnessed the
event first-hand. On your next visit you bring a film crew
and produce a motion picture which includes many scenes
featuring cat juggling. When the film is released in the
United States, many theater owners experience a large
increase in patronage from both the curious, who buy
tickets to see the spectacle, and animal rights advocates,
who protest outside. After receiving numerous complaints
about the film, the legislature of the state of Tennabama
passes a statute which prohibits showing any film
containing any visual display of the illegal practice of
cat juggling for any purpose.
A Tennabama theater owner is arrested for screening your
film. Will a criminal prosecution of the theater owner for
violating Tennabama’s law be successful?
A. Yes, because commercial speech is unprotected by the
First Amendment
B. Yes, if the illegal practice of cat juggling is
increasing in Tennabama
C. No, the statute is an overbroad regulation of speech
because it prohibits the showing of the film for any
purpose
D. No because films, as a form of speech, are absolutely
protected by the First Amendment