Privacy vs. the Press: The Issue Remains
Date: 06 March 1975
By MARTIN ARNOLD
Martin ARNOLD
Analysis of various ct rulings on issue of privacy vs press; Sup Ct recently ruled in suit brought against Kansas TV station WSB by Martin Cohn, father of rape victim, that newspaper was within law printing victim's name; held that once true information is disclosed in public ct documents open to public inspection, press cannot be sanctioned for publishing it; 2 broad categories of cases involving privacy v press's right to know are discussed; 1 concerns depicting person in 'false light' and other involves public disclosure of private facts about private persons; aim of press and its attys is to get cts eventually to apply 'Sullivan Standard' to privacy cases involving people who are not public figures; in landmark case of NY Times v Sullivan, Sup Ct held that public figure could not recover damages from newspaper in libel case unless plaintiff established 'clear and convincing' proof that statement published was false and that publication either knew it or that it acted in 'reckless disregard' to what should have been its 'high degree of awareness of probable falsity'; Ct ruled last Dec against press in 'false light case' involving Cleveland Plain Dealer's int with widow of W Va construction worker killed in bridge collapse; paper argued that it had right to rept freely about people involved in such dramatic event; but ct ruled that family was subjected to 'calculated falsehoods'; other privacy cases pending include that of Houston Chronicle which has sought state injunction against police dept's selectively denying news media access to both formal and informal arrest records and offense repts; police contend that they may deny access because it involves unjustified invasion of privacy; Sup Ct has not answered in gen terms question of which is more important, invidivual privacy or privilege of press (M)
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Metropolitan Briefs; Jersey Asks Medicaid-Payment Study News Back in Operation Doctors Upheld in Refusing Abortions From the Police Blotter:
Date: 07 March 1975
Fed Judge John F Dooling Jr upholds right of physicians at Nassau County (NY) Med Center to refuse to perform abortions after 12th wk of pregnancy because of fear of possible criminal prosecution despite US Sup Ct ruling that abortions may be performed legally up to 24th wk of pregnancy; also upholds right of center to refuse to admit 3 women for abortion after 12th wk of pregnancy because it actively undertook to place them in other facilities willing to perform abortions (S)
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Daily News Strike Ends With Accord; Accord Ends Daily News Deliverers Strike; Furloughs Canceled
Date: 06 March 1975
By DAMON STETSON
Damon STETSON
NY Daily News on Mar 5 reaches tentative agreement with leaders of striking deliverers union and resumes publication; cancels staff furloughs after settlement is announced; 1st 2 editions of Mar 6 paper are not published because presses started late; impartial arbitrator Herbert L Haber says agreement will provide News with economies it seeks; union pres Carl Levy repts that News, in attempting to institute new work schedules, had predicted that no deliverer would lose more than 3 1/2 hrs of overtime, but men feared they would lose more; News labor relations dir H J Kracke comments; Levy says that News will go back to ct and attempt to have fine set aside in view of deliverers return to work; News had already obtained another show-cause order citing union for contempt for its failure to comply with preliminary injunction signed by Justice Korn; order, signed by Justice Nathaniel T Helman, is returnable on March 6; officials of other unions angered by deliverers' action (M)
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Burns Defends His Bid to F.B.I. on Leak; BURNS BACKS USE OF F.B.I. ON LEAK
Date: 07 March 1975
Burns tells HR Govt Operations subcom that public should receive information on central bank's money supply policy sooner than it does now; says that 90-day lag is too long and should be shortened to 45-day or 60-day delay; rejects suggestion that public be informed immediately after each of com's monthly meetings (S)
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Bomb Damages Paris Office Of West German Publishers
Date: 07 March 1975
bomb destroys Paris office of Axel Springer publishing co of W Ger on March 6 and group sympathetic to Baader-Meinhof anarchist group claimed responsibility for attack; orgn calling itself 'March 6 Group' claims responsibilty for blast in typed message sent to Paris news agency (S)
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Haldeman Said to Get $25,000 For CBS Interview by Wallace
Date: 06 March 1975
By LES BROWN
Les BROWN
H R Haldeman grants extensive int with Mike Wallace of CBS News for fee reptd to be 'in the neighborhood' of $25,000; CBS News says news special will include amateur movies shot by Haldeman of White House events and Pres trips; sources say that if CBS decides to use 2 programs for int, Haldeman's fee will be larger; ABC News pres William Sheehan and NBC News pres Richard C Wald deplore practice of paying for exclusivity with news figures; CBS News argues that int with Haldeman comes under series of personal memoirs it has been doing over yrs and is not in strict sense a news int; CBS News vp Robert Chandler says Haldeman will have no control over program; denies CBS is engaging in 'checkbook' journalism (M)
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CBS And Haldeman
Date: 07 March 1975
By James Reston
James Reston
J Reston comment on CBS televised int with H R Haldeman for which he was paid $25,000; holds CBS's action may be setting dangerous precedent by introducing unequal principle that news belongs to co with biggest bankroll; action may have adverse effect on stations that cannot afford to pay so much; such ints are potentially valuable not only for performer but also for network since such programs are usually sponsored broadcasts in which network can afford to pay $25,000 and still make large profit
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Private Briefings Given by Kissinger Made Public by U.S.; PRESS BRIEFINGS PUBLISHED BY U.S.
Date: 07 March 1975
By LESLIE H. GELB Special to The New York Times
Leslie GELB
US State, Dept, responding to request under Freedom of Information Act, formally makes public transcripts of background briefings given reporters by Sec Kissinger regarding recent nuclear arms negotiations with Soviet Union in Vladivostok; transcripts, which earlier were not attributed to Kissinger, deal with briefings of newsmen in which Kissinger explained how agreement on ceilings for nuclear arms was reached and what it meant (S)
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The Washington Star Struggles To Survive Circulation Battle
Date: 07 March 1975
By MARTIN ARNOLD Special to The New York Times
Martin Special
staff of Washington Star-News have made various contributions toward keeping paper alive; have paid for ad to spur reader interest, agreed to 4-day work wk to avoid layoffs and agreed to accept early retirement bonuses; paper during last 4 yrs has lost $15-million, including $7.7-million in '74 and has been kept afloat only by corp's broadcasting revenues; Joe L Allbritton, who bought paper in July, has lent it $5-million during '74; Allbritton says he is willing to sustain $2-million yrly deficit for several yrs but is counting on continued revenue of broadcast facility; is awaiting ruling by FCC as to whether Star-news will be allowed to keep broadcast facility
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