Context and Analysis of the Stephen Schmidt Case and Colegiación Obligatoria in Costa Rican Journalism

Abstract

This paper includes a thorough background on issues such as professional licensing, journalism professionalism and journalist licensing, in preparation for an analysis of the Stephen Schmidt/Costa Rica case in the inter-American human rights system. I examine in particular the decisions of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in Schmidt and speculate as to how those bodies reached such different conclusions. I defend the position that the compulsory licensing of journalists is incompatible with the human right of free expression, and, from that point of view, I offer some thoughts on the future of journalist licensing.

Keywords: journalism, journalist, licensing, human rights, freedom of expression, Inter-American, Costa Rica, Stephen Schmidt

JEL Classification: D4, J23, J42, J44, J51, J58, K23, K31, K33, K39, L12, L50, L82, L86, N30, N36