Daily Emerald

Student run weekly newspaper in the U. S.

The Daily Emerald is the independent, student run weekly newspaper produced at the University of Oregon in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Its predecessor, the Oregon Daily Emerald newspaper, founded in 1899, trained many prominent writers and journalists and made important contributions to journalism case law. Currently, the Daily Emerald publishes a weekly newspaper on Mondays.

The Daily Emerald and associated publications, including the quarterly magazine Ethos, are published by the Emerald Media Group. The Emerald operates quasi independently of the university with offices in Suite 302 and 305 of the Erb Memorial Union.

On May 24, 1966, the Emerald ran a story, "Students Condone Marijuana Use," by author Annette Buchanan, which included seven unnamed sources discussing their drug use. The interviews were granted under the condition that the sources' names would not be revealed. After reading Buchanan's story, local law enforcement officials convened a grand jury investigation into the illegal use of drugs. On June 1, 1966, the Lane County District Attorney subpoenas Buchanan, requesting names of sources. Buchanan refused and was fined $300 for contempt of court. The case went through the court system until the Oregon Supreme Court dismissed Buchanan's claim that the Oregon Constitution protected her. In 1968 the U. S. Supreme Court refused to grant certiorari. Subsequently, the Oregon Legislative Assembly passed a journalistic shield law (ORS 44.510 through 44.540). The Oregon Shield Law provides extensive protection for all members of the news and information media. The statute provides absolute protection from compelled disclosure of both sources and all information obtained by journalists in the course of their work. It is not clear whether the journalist must have promised confidentiality for the source of information to be covered by the law. The only exceptions to the Oregon statute exist where: (1) there is probable cause to believe that the journalist has or is about to commit a crime or (2) where the defendant in a defamation suit has asserted a defense based on the content or source of the information.