Media Freedom and Regulation in the New Media World [antikvár]

In spring 2012, the Hungarian Academy of Sciences decided to establish the Media Studies Research Group for the management of various social scientific research activities related to the media. Activities related to media law are of paramount importance among these, not least because of the rapid and major changes taking place in the field of media regulations, the many open questions that arise both on the national and the European level and the disputes related to the media regulations. The Academy hopes that this initiative will enable the research team to conduct studies that are significant on a European scale, as well as to participate in international exchanges related to the subject. In 2013 the research group launched a research programme entitled 'The fundamentals of European thought on media law, with special respect to certain issues related to the freedom of speech', which is scheduled to run until the end of 2015. The programme includes the publication of several independent papers and volumes of studies, as well as the organisation of conferences. It consists of several research projects covering several distinct legal fields. We hope that this diverse approach will allow both the researchers and their readers to define the fundamentals of European thought on media law, to identify the possible models for the resolution of the various questions that arise, to understand the 'common minimum' of European regulations that is present in all countries and to establish whether 'best practices' exist in these areas and, if so, what they are. Besides identifying the various European approaches, it is at least as important to examine the legal system of the United States and, possibly, some other legal systems that are relevant from the European viewpoint (eg Canada, Australia, New Zealand, etc), and to study the interactions between them. The Academy invited distinguished scholars from many countries working in the field of media and free speech law to take part in the research programme and send manuscripts for the planned publication of a collection of essays. The participation of diverse authors from various countries and backgrounds greatly contributed to the value of the research. The compiled papers are published in this book as a first step to promote the research on an international level. The book is made up of seven structural units, which encompass a significant part of the current issues of the freedom of speech and media law. The first unit (Fundamental issues of media regulation) deals with the basic theoretical issues of media regulation. The theoretical / philosophical grounds of the freedom of speech and the freedom of the