Olivia N. v. National Broadcasting Co.

Olivia N. appeals from a judgment of dismissal which the court rendered before the commencement of a scheduled jury trial in her action against respondents National Broadcasting Co., Inc. and the Chronicle Broadcasting Company.

Appellant’s complaint sought damages from respondents for injuries allegedly inflicted upon her by certain juveniles who were acting upon the stimulus of observing a scene of brutality which had been broadcast in a television drama entitled “Bom Innocent.” The subject matter of the television film was the harmful effect of a state-run home upon an adolescent girl who had become a ward of the state. In one scene of the film, the young girl enters the community bathroom of the facility to take a shower. She is then shown taking off her clothes and stepping into the shower, where she bathes for a few moments. Suddenly, the water stops and a look of fear comes across her face. Four adolescent girls are standing across from her in the shower room. One of the girls is carrying a “plumber’s helper,” waving it suggestively by her side. The four girls violently attack the younger girl, wrestling her to the floor. The young girl is shown naked from the…