Managing and Covering the Murdaugh Case and Other “Trials of the Century” Published Feb. 2023 By Eric P. Robinson, USC School of Journalism and Mass Communications Although it is common to call a high-profile trial “the trial of the century,” it is a misnomer; there have been several such trials...
A Story Of Music, Trees, And Family By Two Sons Of The American South
A Story Of Music, Trees, And Family By Two Sons Of The American South Tom Poland 1/19/23 By Tom Poland A Southern Writer www.tompoland.net tompol@earthlink.net On a January day in 2019 I met Chuck Leavell in Georgia’s geographic center. We met to write a magazine cover story. Our story would...
A dozen ideas to get reading more in 2023
A dozen ideas to get reading more in 2023 Reba Campbell 1/19/23By Reba CampbellReading has always been a delight for me. I loved the library’s summer reading clubs when I was a kid. Browsing bookstores is a favorite pastime when I travel. Countless books on writers and writing are scattered...
Billy Holland: Living for a purpose
Living on Purpose: They hear His voice, and follow Him Dr. William Holland 1/19/23By Dr. William Holland Life is changing all around us. With technology providing an opportunity for every person on the planet to speak and listen, we are surrounded by so many opinions about everything, it’s becoming more difficult...
Supreme Court Declines Chance to Clarify Right to Record Police
Supreme Court Declines Chance to Clarify Right to Record Police Published Nov. 2021 By Eric P. Robinson, USC School of Journalism and Mass Communications On Nov. 1 the U.S. Supreme Court declined to accept for review a decision by the federal Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver holding that...
WELCOME TO SWAMPTON: A FICTIONAL HUMOR COLUMN
WELCOME TO SWAMPTON: A FICTIONAL HUMOR COLUMN Dear Mr. President Michael DeWitt, Jr. Posted March 24, 2021By Michael DeWitt, Jr.Welcome to Swampton, S.C., population 2,168, unless it’s Saturday night and we all “ride off” to the Fairdale Walmart so Momma can get her hair done for church tomorrow. Weather ForecastThe...
2nd Acquittal
Stuart Neiman Cartoon: 2nd Acquittal Posted February 17, 2021By Stuart Neiman This content is being shared through the S.C. News Exchange and is for use in SCPA member publications. Please use appropriate bylines and credit line
Prepare a go-bag for presentations
By John Foust, Advertising Trainer Richard is an advertiser who has seen years of sales presentations. His pet peeve is any salesperson who shows up unprepared. “It’s a waste of valuable time to be in a meeting where someone is not ready for the topic at hand,” he said. “I...
Legal Q&A: Can/should an agency require a person filing a FOI request include name, telephone number, physical address?
Legal Q&A (10.16.19) Q. Can/should an agency require a person filing a FOI request include name, telephone number, physical address? By SCPA Attorney Taylor Smith A. Public bodies, including, but limited to, state agencies, are not required to gather contact information of a SCFOIA requester beyond what is necessary to...
Legal Q&A: Selling photo goods
Legal Q&A: Selling photo goods (July 2019) Q. Is it legally appropriate to offer an online marketplace through my newspaper’s website whereby a customer can have an image or video published by the paper to be placed on a new product for sale (i.e. coffee mug, calendar, digital picture/video frame)?...
Legal Q&A: Can an individual advertise guns for sale in the classifieds?
Legal Q&A: Advertising gun sales (July 2019) Q: Can an individual advertise guns for sale in the classifieds? By SCPA Attorney Jay Bender A: If your question is intended to provide guidance to a prospective advertiser, my suggestion is that you tell the seller that he or she must consult...
Legal Q&A: Law enforcement redaction
Q: In response to a S.C. FOIA request, can law enforcement redact information of a personal nature where the public disclosure thereof would constitute unreasonable invasion of personal privacy?
Legal Q&A: Advertising CBD oil
Q: Can I publish advertising for CBD oil? The sort answer is yes. The longer answer is that the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that advertising for lawful products may be published without restriction where the advertising is neither false nor misleading. CBD oil may be sold lawfully in South...
Legal Q&A: Rerunning syndicated columns
Q: Is it OK to rerun syndicated columns that you originally paid for (for instance old Louis Grizzard columns that had run in our papers a long time ago)?
Legal Q&A: Obtaining student records
Q: Can I obtain student records from a local public school pursuant to a S.C. FOIA request?
Legal Q&A: Liability of public bodies
Q: Can fulfilling an S.C. FOIA request result in liability for public bodies?
Legal Q&A: Photographing private property
Q: A local business is not letting our photographer take a photo of a sign on the outside of the building, which says they are closed to do training. Can we insist on taking that photo from their parking lot?
Legal Q&A: Suing a public body from out-of-state
Q: Can I sue a public body for a SCFOIA violation regarding a request for information if I am a resident of another state?
Legal Q&A: Search and retrieval fees
Q: Does a public body have to charge for the fees associated with search, retrieval, and redaction of records in fulfilling a FOIA request?
Legal Q&A: Right to inspect
Q: Do you have to be a member of the press to inspect incident reports, the minutes from a public meeting, booking/detention information, or all documents that were distributed to or reviewed by a public official during a public meeting?
Legal Q&A: Written FOIA requests
Q: Is a written FOIA request necessary to see records that were distributed to or reviewed by an elected official during a public meeting?
Legal Q&A: Recording public officials
Legal Q&A: Recording public officials (Feb. 2018) Q: Can you record public officials on public property? By SCPA Attorney Taylor Smith A: Yes. The rights under the First Amendment are not absolute but assuming the act of recording does not substantially interfere with the public official’s performance of his or her...