The United States Supreme Court has decided to block cameras from a high-profile federal trial on gay marriage.

The San Francisco trial will decide whether California's Proposition 8, a voter-approved ban on gay marriage, is constitutional.

Lynne Marie Kohm, professor of family law at Regent University's School of Law appeared on CBN Newschannel's Morning program for more insight on the trial. Click play to watch the interview.

Presiding judge Vaughn Walker had tried to stream live video of the trial to other federal courthouses and also on the video website YouTube. But the Supreme Court said his plan ignored a federal statute.

"Not only did it ignore the federal statute that establishes the procedures by which its rules may be amended, its express purpose was to broadcast a high-profile trial that would include witness testimony about a contentious issue," the court ruled.

"The Supreme Court just struck a huge blow against transparency and accountability," said Rick Jacobs, chairman of the Courage Campaign, a Los Angeles-based gay rights organization. "This historic trial will remain largely hidden from public view, despite it's historic potential to challenge and change the minds of Americans."

Most federal courts fear video broadcasts of trials will diminish the system's dignity, could unfairly influence rulings and disrupt proceedings.