ipl-logo

Free Speech Coalition Case Study

435 Words2 Pages

Nichele Rascoe
MCO 300 – Media Law and Ethics
Dr. Breslin

Name of Case: Ashcroft v. Free Speech Coalition
Citation: 535 US 234 (2002)
Date of Decision: April 16, 2002
Vote: 6-3
Author of Opinion: Justice Kennedy
Legal Topic: Freedom of Speech
Posture of the Case: The Free Speech Coalition (FSC) (plaintiff) v. John D Ashcroft, Attorney General (defendant). The Federal District Court was summoned against John D. Ashcroft alleging that the Child Pornography Prevention Act is in violation of the First Amendment. Thus restraining the Adult Entertainment Trade Association.

Facts: The Congress enacted the Child Pornography Prevention Act (CPPA) in 1996 to prohibit “any visual depiction, including any photographs, film, video, picture, or computer –generated images that visually seem to have a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct.” New York v. Ferber distinguished child pornography from other explicit speech due to the State’s interest in keeping children protected from exploitation during any visual production process. Pornography can only be banned if considered obscene, which was determined during the Ferber Case. In the case of Miller v. California,) Ferber did not want to reflect on what the state considered obscene. Ferber was more interested in prosecuting those who promote the …show more content…

Free Speech Coalition, the Supreme Court gave the First Amendment protection to computer – generated or virtual child pornography. Yet, the previous decision in Ferber v. New York virtual pornography is banned. It is considered “real” child pornography. The government held this decision to protect the interest of children. The most serious crime against children is sexual abuse. Congress recognized that many individuals that have such desires for children are likely to commit criminal acts based upon impulse. In addition, serious offenders have the tendency to trade pictures of children as well as written sexual

Show More
Related
84 Words | 1 Pages

In the “Bethel School District v. Fraser” case, Fraser believed that the school violated his first amendment “freedom of speech” rights. Fraser gave a speech with some inappropriate content in it and the school gave him a three day suspension because two teachers warned him before he gave the speech. Fraser took it to court and the justices said they would shorten the suspension and let him have his right to speak at graduation because the school was taking away his freedom of speech.

Read More
1959 Words | 8 Pages

This case is also regularly cited in other Supreme Court cases and is often a deciding factor. It has been used in cases like Konigsberg v. State Bar “That view, which of course cannot be reconciled with the law relating to libel, slander, misrepresentation, obscenity, perjury, false advertising, solicitation of crime, complicity by encouragement, conspiracy, and the like, is said to be compelled by the fact that the commands of the First Amendment are stated in unqualified terms: "Congress shall make no law . . . abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble . . . . " But as Mr. Justice Holmes once said: "[T]he provisions of the Constitution are not mathematical formulas having their essence in their form; they are organic living institutions transplanted from English soil.

Read More
547 Words | 3 Pages

Citation: Ashcroft v. Free Speech Coalition 535 U.S. 234 (2002) U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Facts: The Free Speech Coalition which is a non-profit trade association of the pornography and adult entertainment industry in the United States filed suit, against the Child Pornography Prevention Act of 1996 (CPPA). The child pornography prevention act prohibits and sets penalties for activities such as depicting any visual image of the sexual abuse of minors. This includes pictures, video, and even modified images with the likeness or appearance of a minor engaging in a sexual act. The Promotion, advertisement, and distribution of such works are also prohibited and have consequences.

Read More
103 Words | 1 Pages

People have the tendency to take the First Amendment for granted, but some tend to use it to their favor. Stanley Fish presents his main argument about how people misuse this amendment for all their conflicts involving from racial issues to current political affairs in his article, Free-Speech Follies. His article involves those who misinterpret the First Amendment as their own works or constantly use it as an excuse to express their attitudes and desires about a certain subject matter. He expresses his personal opinions against those who consistently use the First Amendment as a weapon to defend themselves from harm of criticism.

Read More
1538 Words | 7 Pages

Louise Gerdes’ book presents a collection of speeches, personal reflections, and essays that discuss sexual violence. “Tracking convicted pedophiles is necessary to help law enforcement protect children from these predators with a tracking device which will alert authorities if a convicted sex offender is near a school or any other prohibited area” (Gerdes 157). Gerdes explains how much safer it would be if necessary precautions were taken, which would be a big step in the right direction regarding the prevention of sexual assault and rape. One might say a tracking device is a little excessive to be mandated to wear at all times; but these criminals should have thought about that before they committed the unspeakable acts that they've been prosecuted for. Always being able to know the exact whereabouts of sex offenders would be extremely helpful to authorities because while that sex offender is getting closer and closer to that elementary school, police will already be in pursuit and stop the potential sex offender in his/her tracks.

Read More
740 Words | 3 Pages

The third and final essay of the book is titled Empire of the obscene. Empire of the obscene traces the history of the pornography industry. The essay begins by convey the decision made by Attorney General Edwin Meese III’s commission on pornography. The commission outlined the harmful effects and called for strict enforcement of federal obscenity laws. The author then introduces the reader to Reuben Sturman.

Read More
1756 Words | 8 Pages

Lisa Simpson’s website, its creation and the ensuing reactions, raises several first amendment issues. The first issues focuses on the website itself, and subsequent suppression of the site. Lisa’s sight was shut down because of content and apparent community values which action raises serious free speech concerns. This leads into the picketing from the parents who argue that the website should not be visible to their children. With the website being shut down, a protest arises between Lisa and an anti-gay group who make many inflammatory remarks concerning the opposing side’s sexual orientation as well as the talks of burning an effigy of a person with the word “faggot” written across its chest.

Read More
865 Words | 4 Pages

Censorship of The First Amendment This paper will discuss how censorship denies citizens of the United States our full rights as delineated in the First Amendment. It will outline how and why the first amendment was created and included in the Constitution of the United States of America. This paper will also define censorship, discuss a select few legal cases surrounding freedom of speech and censorship as well as provide national and local examples of censorship.

Read More
1204 Words | 5 Pages

The article argues that the courts should only view harmful speech in the same eyes and rule them the same as if they were conduct harms. The source then discusses how many scholars believe that freedom of speech only applies when the benefits outweigh the harms, regarding what is being said. The article does a good job of approaching the problem through a semi-neutral lens. The article clearly lets its opinion be known at times; however, it approaches the opposite side of the argument in a fair manner. The article will be incredibly beneficial because it discusses when freedom of speech should not apply with a neutral approach.

Read More
251 Words | 2 Pages

I believe that the author’s thesis is about the issue of censorship and how it impacts our First Amendment. The author presents us a two different perspective of the issue. Such as, our practice of our First Amendment can lead us to a place where someone can create materials that we may find offensive. But are protected by the First Amendment at the same time could have people who want to limit offensive material and therefore, through censorship are limiting the First Amendment rights of others. To demonstrate her point, Susan Jacoby, interviewed a small sample of women to gather their perspective about an image from a Playboy magazine.

Read More
650 Words | 3 Pages

Opponents of Carlin 's legendary act stated that the Supreme Court 's ruling was needed in order to protect social values, despite the “decay of human decency” as George called it. Patrick Trueman, CEO and president of Morality in Media, which is the same group that reported WBAI to the FCC for airing Carlin’s 7 dirty words routine, stated, "The ruling in Pacifica was an important one for people who want to uphold the standard of decency in society. If the FCC was vigilant, you wouldn 't see the networks pushing the envelope, but they do because they aren 't interested in upholding standards of decency and are only interested in making money and competing with cable TV. You get to this point where the FCC has not done its job adequately and

Read More
997 Words | 4 Pages

Megan’s Law was created in 1994 in honor of Megan Kanka a seven-year-old who lived in Township, New Jersey that was coaxed into a known pedophile's house while outside her home riding her bike with the promise of seeing a new puppy. (Schapiro, 2014) Therefore, she was raped and murdered by this known pedophile who lived in her community named Jesse Timmendequas. Megan Kanka’s body was discovered in Mercer County Park. (Schapiro, 2014)

Read More
1686 Words | 7 Pages

Censorship can be described as the act of cutting out certain material that can be considered obscene or inconvenient for the community. This material can be found in social media such as in the TV, radio, or the internet. Censorship can be challenged because of the first amendment: freedom of speech. Free expression is the right of expressing opinions and ideas without any fear of being restrained or censored. However, freedom of speech does not include the right to incite actions that would harm others or the distribution of obscene material (Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, 2000).

Read More
730 Words | 3 Pages

Hello, It is quite comical how we have gotten to the point of which we are now censoring what we can and cannot wear. It is extremely ludacris. The reason I find it both comical and ludacris is because freedom of expression is a human right. The reason I wear the hat is that I am in support of a Conservative President. I support his Pro-Life stance, his call to a return of Traditional values, his defense of the West, his speech on why we must protect Western Values and our Judeo-Christian heritage, his Muslim ban and his support for Israel.

Read More
817 Words | 4 Pages

Freedom of Speech Freedom of speech is the freedom all people have, to express what they consider and express any opinions. It is an ability to express our opinions freely without being punished or censored. All people throughout the world are entitled and must have right to freedom of speech. However, how much do we know about freedom of speech: when did it occur? Does every countries have it?

Read More

More about Free Speech Coalition Case Study

Related Topics

Open Document