Although the media has long been familiar with the tort law of libel and invasion of privacy, they may not be aware that the law of torts reaches more broadly. This paper examines legal developments in cases where actions of the media are alleged either to have caused the plaintiff to do something resulting in physical harm or financial loss, or to have caused a third person to harm the plaintiff physically. Many such actions also give a legal twist to social scientific research on the effects of mass media. This paper focuses primarily on tort actions alleging negligence, a theory of liability offering considerable flexibility. After briefly reviewing the types of situations typically leading to such actions against the media, the paper reviews tort law principles underlying negligence, considers the role of the First Amendment in negligence actions, examines how the courts have applied the principles in cases with media defendants, and assesses the implications. (Author/DF)