Health care case adds pressure for cameras in Supreme Court

Now that the Supreme Court has agreed to hear a dispute over the federal health care law, the justices are facing the strongest challenge to their ban on televised hearings.Members of Congress and news industry leaders have asked the court to allow the televising of oral arguments, to be held over five and a half hours during two days in March.A USA TODAY/Gallup Poll found that 72% of the people surveyed think the justices should allow cameras for those arguments. Several polls in the past decade have shown majority support for televising the court's arguments, in general.

The pressure from Congress, which included a Senate hearing last week on legislation that would require the televising of most arguments, and from outside interests following the health care case, could present a turning point in breaking down justices' resistance to cameras."I can't think of another case in recent years, except Bush v. Gore, that has generated so much public interest," says Sally Rider, former administrative assistant to Chief Justices William Rehnquist and John Roberts and now a University of Arizona law professor, referring to the 2000 Florida election case.How Spy Cams Make Life More Expedient  ?

"Now that I'm away from the court," Rider added, "it's incredible how often I hear people talk about wanting to see oral arguments. When they find out they're not on TV, they are shocked." Yet Rider cautioned that the justices might think if they say yes to televising the health care controversy, they would be pressured to open other arguments."I think it's inevitable that we'll have cameras in the court. The question is when," says New York University law professor Barry Friedman, who studies the judiciary and public attitudes. "This case would be a wonderful, object lesson in the work of the court."

Sony trims its profit forecast by one-quarter

Sony trims its profit forecast by one-quarter

Sony Corp, Japan's largest exporter of consumer electronics, cut its annual profit forecast after a slump in demand led the company to lower its estimate for television sales.
Net income may total 60 billion yen ($772 million) for the year started April 1, the Tokyo-based company said in a statement on Thursday, revising its earlier projection of 80 billion yen. The company also cut its estimate for sales to 7.2 trillion yen for the year, from 7.5 trillion yen predicted two months ago.

Japan's largest exporter of consumer electronics slowed down production of TVs, cameras and Blu-ray discs after the March earthquake crippled its factories and disrupted supplies. Chief Executive Officer Howard Stringer, who has budgeted 14 billion yen this year to pay for the costs of the worst hack attacks on Sony ever, also confronts slowing demand in Europe and the United States.

"The economic slowdown, especially in the US and Europe, is leading to a significant drop in TV prices, worsening the industry's oversupply situation," Kota Ezawa, a Tokyo-based analyst at Citigroup Inc, said before the earnings. "Sony will need to promote more restructuring."New Mexico Judge Charged With Raping Prostitute.

The first-quarter net loss totaled 15.5 billion yen in the three months ended June 30, compared with profit of 25.7 billion yen a year earlier, the Tokyo-based company said. That missed the 2.5 billion yen loss average of three analysts' estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

Sony fell 1.1 percent to close at 2,013 yen in Tokyo trading before the announcement, widening its loss this year to 31 percent.Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average has slid 3.2 percent.Samsung Electronics Co, the world's largest maker of televisions, earlier this month reported a 26 percent drop in second-quarter operating profit after a slump in sales of flat screens masked a surge in demand for smartphones and tablet computers.