Blogging and the First Amendment

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – The Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia and Marshall University are hosting a panel discussion on "Blogging and the Potential Limits of the First Amendment" at 2 p.m. Tuesday, September 22, in the Joan C. Edwards Performing Arts Center on the campus of Marshall University in Huntington. The public is invited to attend. Attorneys who attend will qualify for 1.8 MCLE. The panel will be moderated by Supreme Court Chief Justice Brent Benjamin.

"This forum focuses on an issue which is both timely and important," Chief Justice Benjamin said. "As more and more Americans engage in online blogging, questions arise as to how and when the First Amendment should apply. An outstanding panel has been put together to discuss and explore these issues. I believe this forum promises to be informative."

Panelists will include

– Lucy Dalglish, executive director of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press in Washington, D.C.;

– Gene Policinski, vice president and executive director of the First Amendment Center at Vanderbilt University;

– Howard J. Bashman, an appellate attorney in suburban Philadelphia who has a blog, howappealinglaw.com;

– Kevin Qualls, an attorney who is on the faculty at Murray State University in Kentucky; and

– Marshall University Journalism Dean Corley Dennison.

The panel discussion will be part of Marshall University’s celebration of Constitution Week.

The Supreme Court will hear arguments in several cases at Marshall at 10 a.m. the same day in the same location. It will be the fourth year the Court has heard an argument docket at Marshall during Constitution Week.