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Studies of journalism history and law have contributed to an increasingly complete picture of the profession during the late nineteenth century, but these parallel lines of scholarship should be drawn together to deepen an understanding of the social role and legal status of journalism at a pivotal time. One key question is how the press claimed to adopt professional values such as independence and impartiality at the same time that it actively advocated for legal change on its own behalf. This study explains how the press navigated this apparent contradiction while confronting the issue of libel law reform in trade press coverage between 1895 and 1899. The article applies two related theoretical frameworks—institutionalism and the civil sphere—to analyze the structural and discursive factors in the advocacy of three trade publications. It argues that institutionalism and the civil sphere are complementary because they are responsive to each other's shortcomings, and therefore could illuminate new pathways for scholars seeking to develop a more robust and holistic legal historical perspective for the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Could news organizations face civil liability for voluntarily unmasking their anonymous online commenters? This article examines that nascent legal question through a discussion of contract law applied to a study of seven news Web sites' policies and practices. The study finds that although the news organizations claim that they zealously guard user privacy and will resist unmasking commenters under almost any circumstances, most of them have user agreements that would likely immunize them from civil liability for almost any reason. Are users getting a plain deal? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]