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Journalists Learn About Media Law at Reporters Workshop

Posted by: Julia Wilburn on Apr 26, 2024

Reporters from across the state gathered in Nashville to learn about copyright law, investigative journalism, open records law, covering state and local government, and more during the annual Reporters Workshop program, produced jointly by the Tennessee Bar Association and the Tennessee Association of Broadcasters. Participants were selected from a number of applicants who were interested in developing a deeper understanding of media law issues that affect their everyday work, including access to government information, defamation and privacy concerns in reporting and other timely topics. Friday's panelists included veteran reporters Phil Williams with News Channel 5 in Nashville and Meribah Knight with Nashville Public Radio; copyright attorneys Keane Barger and Tim Warnock with the Nashville office of Loeb & Loeb; Jennifer Safstrom from Vanderbilt's First Amendment Clinic; and legal media experts Paul McAdoo with the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press and Deborah Fisher, executive director at the Tennessee Coalition for Open Government.

On Saturday, Clint Brewer with Imperium Public Strategies moderated a panel on covering state and local government with Lauren Topping, Bureau of Ethics & Campaign Finance; Alex Apple, Deputy Communications Director, Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell; and Steve Cavendish, Nashville Banner. Ron Harris of Neal & Harwell discussed defamation; Robb Harvey with Holland & Knight LLP talked with Judge Valerie Smith, Circuit Court Judge, 30th Judicial District (Shelby County) and Chancellor Anne Martin, Part II of the Chancery Court (Davidson County) getting the judges' perspectives on covering the courts.

Reporters Workshop 2024 attendees and panelists.