By Rachel Grant, University of Florida, Membership Co-Chair, rgrant@jou.ufl.edu

Dr. Patrick C. File, an assistant professor of media law at the Reynolds School of Journalism at the University of Nevada, Reno, recently wrote a book titled “Bad News Travels Fast: The Telegraph, Libel, and Press Freedom in the Progressive Era.”

Q: Please describe the focus of your book. 

A: The book demonstrates how law and technology intertwined at the turn of the twentieth century to influence debates about reputation, privacy, and the acceptable limits of journalism. It does this by examining a series of fascinating libel cases by a handful of plaintiffs—including socialites, businessmen, and Annie Oakley—who sued newspapers across the country for republishing false newswire reports.

Q: How did you come across this subject? Why did it interest you?

A: When digging through journalism trade publications of the 1880s and 1890s as a Ph.D. student, I found coverage of the infamous Tyndale Palmer and Annie Oakley libel crusades, and wondered why I hadn’t read about them in journalism history scholarship since they seemed like a really big deal to journalists at the time. There appeared to be an interesting parallel to present day issues related to mass communication technology, the careless or wanton spreading of false, harmful information, and questions about how the law should try to keep up. I got to thinking about the relationship among professional practices and ethics, communication technology, and the social construction of the concept of press freedom, and a dissertation and book were born.