Communication, Media & Information Law Co-Sponsored by Constitutional Law and Defamation and Privacy

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Public polling suggests press trustworthiness is at a record low, with a deep partisan divide. Defamation suits against cable news networks present a new battleground on disinformation. Major judicial opinions openly cast doubt on press impartiality. Some critics charge that the trends in press trustworthiness are the result of citizens not seeing themselves reflected in patterns of press ownership, coverage, and framing. What are the risks to democracy when the press is not trusted? This panel explores the causes of plummeting press trustworthiness, the consequences, and the role that the law plays in structuring a vibrant democratic public sphere.