# International Communication Law

Subject classification: this is a law learning projects resource.
Class: International Communication Law (2025)
Professor: Juan Carlos Riofrio
Welcome to the International Communication Law Learning Project, part of the School of Law. This learning project aspires to establish the highest standards in the field of international communication law by fostering a comparative analysis of legal systems across different countries. By examining and contrasting the regulations, principles, and practices governing communication in diverse jurisdictions, the project aims to identify best practices and promote a deeper understanding of global legal standards.
The ultimate goal of this project is to equip legal professionals with the knowledge necessary to navigate the complexities of cross-border communication, ensuring compliance with diverse legal systems while upholding fundamental principles of fairness and accuracy.

## Topics included in this project

You can help improving the following topics.

### Foundational Concepts

* Introduction to Communication Law
* Historical Development of Communication Regulations
* Sources of Communication Law: Constitutional, Statutory, and Case Law
Ecuadorian Legal System

### The elements of communication

* The aim of communication
* Subjects of communication
* Means of communication
* Context of communication
* Legal principles of the message
* The action of informing

### Means of communication

* Types of means of communication
* Wired and unwired means of communication
* Essential facilities
Telecommunications Regulation in Ecuador

### Censorship & Copyright

* History of censorship
* Censorship across the world
* Intellectual Property and Copyright in Communications
Censorship in Ecuador

### Violent content

* Standards to broadcast news about terrorism
* Notion of violent content
* Standards to broadcast violent content
* Filtering violence

### Truth

* What is truth? (Pilate)
* Fake News, Misinformation, and Disinformation
* The algorithm of the truth

### Right to identity

* The philosophical question of “Who am I?”
* The identity of the human species
* Personal identity
* Sexual identity
* Digital identity

### Cultural expressions

* Cultural expressions and the law
* The right to feast and festivals
* Religious parody & blasphemy
* American standards of religious expressions
* International standards of religious expressions

### Tolerance & conscience

* Tolerance of diversity
* Tolerance of evil things
* Conscience clause of journalists and publisher’s ideology. Duty of reciprocal respect

### Honor, reputation, and hate speech

* Defamation, Libel, and Slander
* Defamation, slander, libel, and other crimes against the individual’s reputation
* International standards of hate speech
* Countering online hate speech

### Privacy and Data Protection

* What is a secret & when it deserves protection
* History of protection of secrets & access to public information
* The right to privacy in the common law and civil law countries
* Surveillance and Wiretapping Laws
* Habeas data & access to private information
* Mass surveillance & the digital panopticon (in America, Russia, and China)
* Lovely spam & the law
* Regulation of Cookies and Digital Tracking

### Bodily exhibitions & the right to fashion

* Purpose of the right to clothing & fashion
* The exhibition of the human body: To be naked or not to be?
* Standards of pornography
* Standards of obscenity
* Standards of indecency
* Filtering & rating books, magazines, videos, and videogames

### Commercial speech and Advertising Law

* Commercial, ideological, and artistic speech
* Duties related to the protection of consumers in the media
* Bans of ads due to unfair competition law
* Legal liability for using some keywords in digital advertising
* False Advertising and Deceptive Practices
* Sponsorship and Native Advertising
* Political Advertising and Campaign Finance Rules

### Telecommunications

* Universal Service Obligations
* Net Neutrality and Access to Broadband
* Telecommunication Mergers and Antitrust Issues
* Cross-Ownership Rules

### Digital Communication and Emerging Issues

* Regulation of Social Media Platforms
* Algorithms, Artificial Intelligence, and Content Moderation
* Cybersecurity and Communication Networks