COMM 454 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Ernest Hemingway, New Media, Edward Snowden
16 Dec 2016
School
Department
Course
Professor
Document Summary
Athens: practiced free speech, but it was only targeted for men and it was limited. Roman republic: also tried free speech, failed. Magna carta: first document saying that the king can not do whatever he wants, parliament and members can not be prosecuted, rights are not inherent, arbitrary arrests are no longer valid in the 17th century. Things that limited free speech in england: defamation, sedition. Writing or saying something that undermines the government: blasphemy/haresy. Miss-stating truths of a religion: obscenity. America: british colonies were to follow english rules, practically no free speech rights for colonial americans. Peter zinger: published stories criticizing the governor for being corrupt. Laws on sedition: truth does not matter, true or not, because it undermines the government. People were kicked out of the colonies for sedition. Alexander hamilton: principle was established by alexander hamilton in a case against the government, truth becomes the defense against libel.
