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Culture, Media and Free Speech
75 posts, newest first (page 1 of 4).
Why Fox News in 1996 Proved There Was an Audience Nobody Was ServingA cable channel launched in October 1996 found a large audience almost at once, and that is market evidence about whom the rest of television news served. Matal v. Tam and the Government's Lost Power to Ban Offensive TrademarksThe Court held that Washington cannot refuse a trademark for giving offence, and the reasoning protects every viewpoint, left and right. Snyder v. Phelps and the Hardest Free Speech Case Conservatives Ever DefendedThe Court ruled 8-1 that a hateful picket near a Marine's funeral was protected speech. Conservatives split, and here is who was right. John Peter Zenger and the Jury That Defended American Press Freedom in 1735A New York printer was jailed for mocking a royal governor, and twelve jurors defied the bench to set him free. Here is how it happened. Frederick Douglass's Plea for Free Speech in Boston, Read Passage by PassageA mob broke up an abolitionist meeting in Boston in 1860, and Douglass answered with the best defence of free speech in the language. Tinker's Black Armbands and the Rights Students Carry Through the School GateIn 1969 the Court said Des Moines schools could not punish students for wearing black armbands, and conservative students rely on that ruling today. Brandenburg v. Ohio Protected a Klansman's Speech, and It Protects Yours TooThe 1969 ruling that a Klan leader's speech could not be punished set the modern incitement test, and it shields every unpopular speaker, conservatives too. The Sedition Act of 1798 Jailed a Congressman Who Won Reelection From His CellSeven years after the First Amendment, Congress made it a crime to criticise the government, and the voters turned the party that passed it out of office. What If Every League Abolished the Scoreboard in the Name of EquityA labelled satire follows equal outcomes into the game itself, with handicaps, shared trophies and no score, then explains opportunity versus outcome. A Modest Proposal to Put a Warning Label on Every Novel Before It Hurts SomeoneA labelled satire follows the logic of content warnings until every classic carries cautions longer than the book, then steps out to defend adult readers. The Campus Hearing Where Three Presidents Could Not Answer a Simple QuestionThree university presidents said calls for genocide of Jews depended on context. The answer exposed a double standard, and the cure is one consistent rule. Brown v. Entertainment Merchants and Why Conservatives Split on Video GamesIn 2011 the Court struck down California's ban on selling violent games to minors, with Thomas dissenting on parents' authority. Both views get a hearing. Dirty Jobs and Honest Work, Why Pop Culture Rarely Celebrates the TradesScreens rarely show plumbers, welders and farmers as heroes, and that silence tells young people skilled work is a consolation prize. Respect makes workers. It's a Wonderful Life Is the Most Conservative Film Hollywood Ever MadeCapra's 1946 classic celebrates family, thrift, faith and local institutions, and its villain wants to own everything. It is the conservative Christmas film. From Father Knows Best to the Bumbling Sitcom Dad, What TV Taught About FathersTelevision's dads went from wise heads of the house to the family punchline, and the culture followed the laugh track. Respect for fathers is a choice. Thanksgiving Proclamations of 1789 and 1863, Read as Lessons in GratitudeWashington in 1789 and Lincoln in 1863 asked a divided people to give thanks. Both texts read closely, and why gratitude is a civic habit. The Pledge of Allegiance From 1892 to Under God, and the Fights Along the WayThe Pledge began as a magazine's school celebration in 1892 and changed several times. Each change, from 1923 to 1954 to Newdow, tells a story. Barnette's Fixed Star, Reading the 1943 Opinion on the Pledge Passage by PassageJustice Jackson's 1943 Flag Day opinion in Barnette explains why a free country does not compel patriotism. Its key passages, read closely. Texas v. Johnson Protected Flag Burning, and Conservatives Still Argue ItThe 5-4 flag-burning ruling of 1989 split conservative justices and still splits conservatives. Both positions get a fair hearing before one is argued. Old Glory's Rules, What the Flag Code Says and Why Most of Us Break ItThe Flag Code tells Americans how to display and honour the flag. Its history, its main rules, and why it carries no penalties. Corporate Activism Breaks the Deal Between a Company and Its CustomersCompanies that take political sides spend owners' money on executives' opinions. Friedman's 1970 essay and the stakeholder case, argued fairly. What the 2023 Beer Boycott Taught Corporate America About Its CustomersA 2023 beer promotion cost a brand its title as top seller, and the lesson was about respecting customers, not about any person. The case, in full. Colorblind Law Is Not a Code Word, It Is Harlan's Dissent Made GoodColorblindness was the civil-rights movement's own legal argument, and the strongest objection to it fails against Harlan, the Brown briefs and the 1964 Act. Seven Myths About DEI Programs, Including That Critics Oppose DiversitySeven common claims about DEI programs tested against the Civil Rights Act, the Fourteenth Amendment and the 2023 admissions ruling, with a verdict on each.
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- The Constitution and the Founders
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