Chapter 19 Section 3 Objective: To understand the scope of and the limits on free speech and press

A. Democracy and Freedom of Expression 1. The 1 st and 14 th amendments protect free speech and a free press in order to give people the right to have their say and to hear what others have to say. 2. The guarantees of free speech and press are intended to protect the expression of unpopular views.

3. The Court has ruled that reasonable limits may be placed on the exercise of these rights, including restrictions against libel or slander.

B. Obscenity 1. Obscenity is not protected by the 1 st or 14 th amendment. 2. In 1973, the court ruled that, “contemporary community standards” be used in judging what is obscene, but the definition of obscenity and the restrictions that may be placed on it remain difficult questions.

C. Prior Restraint 1. Except in the most extreme cases, the government cannot curb ideas before they are expressed. 2. Exceptions have been made in the case of threats to national security, threats to the order of military camps or prisons, and public school officials’ editorial control over student publications. (name a case…)

D. Confidentiality 1. Many members of the press refuse to reveal the sources of their information even in courts of law, claiming that unless they can protect their sources, many people will be unwilling to give them important information. 2. The court has rejected this argument, saying that it is up to Congress and the State legislatures to exempt the press from testifying (shield laws); 30 states provide some protection to reporters.

E. Motion Pictures 1. Until 1952, the court viewed the motion picture industry as a business not protected by constitutional guarantees of freedom of the press. 2. Today, motion pictures are protected by freedom of the press, but still are subject to censorship if deemed obscene.

F. Radio and Television 1. Radio and television are subject to extensive federal regulation because they use public airwaves to broadcast their materials. 2. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) cannot exercise prior restraint, but it can prohibit indecent language and can take violations into account when reviewing applications for license renewal.

G. Symbolic Speech 1. Symbolic speech is expression by conduct. 2. The court is sympathetic to the argument that symbolic speech must be protected by the 1 st and 14 th amendments. (Tinker v. DesMoines, Texas v. Johnson).

H. Commercial Speech 1. Commercial speech, mostly advertising, is now protected by the 1 st and 14 th amendments. 2. False and misleading commercial speech or the advertising of illegal goods and services are forbidden.