Daniel Okrent reprints a telling comment about how newspapers report the news, attributed to veteran New York Times editor Lester Markel: The reporter, the most objective reporter, collects fifty facts. Out of the fifty he selects twelve to include in his story (there is such a thing as space limitation). Thus he discards thirty-eight. This […]
Author Archive | Orin Kerr
Fallujah in Pictures:
The Washington Post has a story today about the blog Fallujah in Pictures. According to the Post, the blog’s reproduction of photographs from Iraq seen widely in the Muslim world but not reprinted in U.S. papers demonstrates “how the might of the U.S. military can be matched by a single blogger working part time.” In […]
Steve Martin
sets the record straight.
Bubble Wrap:
Are you stressed out? This site may provide the relief you need. (Don’t miss the manic mode.)
Using Evidence Obtained by Torture at Gitmo?:
Over at Crooked Timber, Kieran is looking for an explanation of statements by Justice Department official Brian Boyle at a recent court hearing about the use of evidence obtained by torture. The press accounts I have seen suggest that the military is fine with using evidence obtained by torture against the Guantanamo detainees. Kieran suggests […]
As Cool As It Must Be
to get your first U.S. Supreme Court argument, I’m not sure that you want press coverage like this. (Link: SCOTUSBlog)
Does Dale Forbid the Solomon Amendment?
Following my earlier post asking questions about the Third Circuit’s Solomon Amendment ruling, several well-informed readers wrote in to say that my concerns were valid, but that the real problem was the Supreme Court’s decision in Boy Scouts of America v. Dale. Under Dale, they argued, the First Amendment gives groups a right to say […]
Disability Law Blog:
The number and diversity of lawprof blogs continues to grow. The latest welcome addition is Disability Law, by lawprof Sam Bagenstos. (Link: Howard)
Judge Gettleman:
While the Question Presented series over at Underneath Their Robes promises lots of fluff, the latest installment is an exception. Judge Gettleman seems like a genuinely cool guy.
Value of the Mainstream Media:
It’s blogosphere-hip to question the value of the mainstream media, but it seems to me that this isn’t the kind of value that most people expect CNN to deliver: PR Meets Psy-Ops in War on Terror On the evening of Oct. 14, a young Marine spokesman near Fallouja appeared on CNN and made a dramatic […]
Yale Outsmarts Harvard:
Michael Froomkin has the scoop.
Is Al-Qaeda a Paper Tiger?:
Kevin Drum collects some stories suggesting the answer may be “yes.” I don’t know what to make of these stories myself, but they seem worth passing on.
Faculty Clubs and Churches:
Bill Stuntz, one of the country’s leading scholars of criminal law, has an interesting essay over at TechCentralStation on the similarities between law school faculties and churches. An excerpt: The past few months have seen a lot of talk about red and blue America, mostly by people on one side of the partisan divide who […]
More on French Antiterrorism Laws:
For those interested in more background on why French antiterrorism laws are so harsh, this paper, The French Experience of Counter-Terrorism, by Brookings fellow Jeremy Shapiro and Benedicte Suzan of the Fondation Mediterraneenne d’Etudes Strategiques, seems to offer a pretty good starting point.
Questions About the Solomon Amendment Ruling:
While I disagree with the existing law banning gays and lesbians from military service, I find myself rather puzzled by today’s ruling by the Third Circuit that the Defense Department cannot enforce the federal law withholding funds from schools that ban on-campus military recuiting (aka the Solomon Amendment). As I understand the ruling, the gist […]