State Supreme Court Partners with PCN on First-Ever Television Coverage of High Court Proceedings
Chief Justice of Pennsylvania Ronald D. Castille has announced an agreement with the Pennsylvania Cable Network (PCN) to allow gavel-to-gavel coverage of the Supreme Court’s oral arguments and to make them available to PCN’s network of more than 3.3 million homes.
PCN coverage of Supreme Court sessions is expected to begin on September 13.
"My colleagues and I are pleased to open our courtroom to PCN’s statewide audience so they can see how our court operates and follow arguments in cases affecting every citizen of Pennsylvania," Chief Justice Castille said.
The Chief Justice noted that the agreement was reached after PCN had operated successful pilot videotaping programs in both the Commonwealth Court and Superior Court.
PCN is a non-profit cable television network created and funded by Pennsylvania's cable television companies. PCN receives no government funding.
"Chief Justice Castille and all the justices are to be commended for their leadership in taking this historic step," said PCN President Brian Lockman. "They are giving Pennsylvanians the opportunity to see the Supreme Court performing its duties as it has since 1684."
In order to implement the agreement with PCN, the Supreme Court has adopted new Internal Operating Procedures to govern the broadcast of court proceedings.
The new rules require that all proceedings be recorded for future broadcast in their entirety. However, PCN can decide which session days it will request permission to record – meaning not all session days will necessarily be broadcast.
Proceedings that have been designated as "sealed" will not be covered, and the Supreme Court may limit or terminate coverage when necessary to protect the parties’ rights or to ensure the orderly conduct of the proceedings. Broadcasts will not include conferences between co-counsel or among the justices.
The rules also stipulate that none of the film, videotape, video discs, still photographs or audio reproductions developed during a proceeding will be admissible as evidence in that proceeding or in subsequent ones.
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