20-144.
The Legislature finds:
(1) That the policy of the State of Nebraska is to
insure the free flow of news and other information
to the public, and that those who gather, write, or
edit information for the public or disseminate information
to the public may perform these vital functions only
in a free and unfettered atmosphere;
(2) That such persons shall not be inhibited, directly
or indirectly, by governmental restraint or sanction
imposed by governmental process, but rather that they
shall be encouraged to gather, write, edit, or disseminate
news or other information vigorously so that the public
may be fully informed;
(3) That compelling such persons to disclose a source
of information or disclose unpublished information
is contrary to the public interest and inhibits the
free flow of information to the public;
(4) That there is an urgent need to provide effective
measures to halt and prevent this inhibition;
(5) That the obstruction of the free flow of information
through any medium of communication to the public
affects interstate commerce; and
(6) That sections 20-144 to 20-147 are necessary to
insure the free flow of information and to implement
the first and fourteenth amendments and Article I,
section 8, of the United States Constitution, and
the Nebraska Constitution.
20-145.
Terms:
(1) Federal or state proceeding shall include any
proceeding or investigation before or by any federal
or state judicial, legislative, executive, or administrative
body;
(2) Medium of communication shall include, but is
not limited to, any newspaper, magazine, other periodical,
book, pamphlet, news service, wire service, news or
feature syndicate, broadcast station or network, or
cable television system;
(3) Information shall include any written, audio,
oral or pictorial news or other material;
(4) Published or broadcast information shall mean
any information disseminated to the public by the
person from whom disclosure is sought ;
(5) Unpublished or nonbroadcast information shall
include information not disseminated to the public
by the person from whom disclosure is sought, whether
or not related information has been disseminated and
shall include, but not be limited to, all notes, outtakes,
photographs, film, tapes, or other data of whatever
sort not itself disseminated to the public through
a medium of communication, whether or not published
or broadcast information based upon or related to
such material has been disseminated;
(6) Processing shall include compiling, storing, transferring,
handling, and editing of information; and
(7) Person shall mean any individual, and any partnership,
corporation, association, or other legal entity existing
under or authorized by the law of the United States,
any state or possession of the United States, the
District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico,
or any foreign country.
20-146.
No person engaged in procuring, gathering, writing,
editing, or disseminating news or other information
to the public shall be required to disclose in any
federal or state proceeding;
(1) The source of any published or unpublished, broadcast
or nonbroadcast information obtained in the gathering,
receiving, or processing of information for any medium
of communication to the public; or
(2) Any unpublished or nonbroadcast information obtained
or prepared in gathering, receiving, or processing
of information for any medium of communication to
the public.
20-147. Act shall be known and may be cited as the Free Flow of Information Act.