Freedom of Speech Essay Examples - Argumentative Topics for Research Papers

To Defend Free Speech or Not?

University campuses are subject to debates across the country. Students are speaking out against racial injustice revealed in unwelcoming, sometimes hostile environments on college campuses. But to some, their demands have gone too far. Are the protestors silencing free speech, or are they just trying to be heard? And are the universities responding by defending free speech, or by suppressing it? This paper attempts to discuss these questions. Review of literature The freedom of speech has been defined by the […]

Madeleine Albright Commencement Speech Summary

In her commencement speech for the 1997 class of Mount Holyoke College, an all women’s school in Massachusetts, Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright spoke about the future of America and the importance of female leaders in modern society. Through the use of rhetoric, apparent in both writing and speaking, Albright shares her message of perseverance with the graduating class. To begin, Albright’s use of repetition assists in portraying the themes of her speech by stressing the points with most effect. […]

How has the Development of the Internet Affected Media Regulation?

Media regulation is defined as the guidance or control of mass media by watchdogs and government via procedures, rules and laws in order to protect the public interest (Feintuck & Varney, 2006). It is commonly associated with print and broadcast news sources but the parameters of regulation have been continuously tested in recent years as a direct result of the development and exponential growth of the Internet and the new media that has emerged from it. Traditionally regulation of the […]

Should we Allow Hate Speech?

Should we allow hate speech? Should we punish people who are exercising their right to protest? The freedom of speech is one of the most important rights, if not the most important. Having the right to say what you want allows people to be critical of their government without fear of being arrested. Our current political environment is testing what this right is and how liberal we should be with it. There have been many protests on both sides of […]

Censorship is an Integral Part of Society

Censorship is the restriction of speech, communication or other information. Censorship affects our society in different ways. Censorship is usually determined by the government or a private foundation. It influences the music we tune in to, news articles, films, and the books we read. Censorship is a widely debated topic, and can be harmful or protective. It is possible to argue that censorship, (deleting offensive things from books, movies, etc.), has no place in a nation that focuses on freedom […]

Should Offensive Conduct such as Hate Speech be Criminalised?

Prevention is an important facet of criminalization, but one that must be subject to principled constraint, lest it result in an overextension of criminal law. There also exists an idea of criminalization as last resort, ultima ratio regis. This is not a constitutional principle and the ambit of this principle should be fairly limited in order to avoid losing the purposiveness of criminal law. Criminalisation, which is connected to the legitimisation of the state, is an act by which the […]

The First Amendment to the Constitution of the USA

The first amendment to the Constitution of the United States reads as follows, Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. (U.S. Constitution) Why does freedom of speech matter? Freedom of speech is what protects people from expressing what matters to them. Most […]

Comparing our First Amendment Rights to the Rights of those in George Orwell’s “1984”

In George Orwell’s book 1984 he talks about the “Obliteration of Self” in Oceania’s Society. We as Americans have the first amendment which entitles us to the freedom of speech, religion, press, petition and assembly. These five freedoms give American citizens the option to embrace their individuality. The freedom of speech is the most important of the first amendment. People are able to say almost anything they think about the government, people etc., to some extent. If we were living […]

An Analysis of the Case Tinker Vs. Des Moines and the Protest against the Vietnam War

In the spots situation Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Neighborhood Institution District (1969 ). John Tinker and also his brother or sisters chose to openly protest the Vietnam Battle by wearing black armbands to institution (Goldman 1). The school really felt that their initiatives to protest the war interrupted the institution atmosphere. DD.NsThe High court stated that DD,? in our system. Undifferentiated anxiety or concern of disturbance. Is inadequate to get over the right to liberty of expression.Ð3Ð? à? cents. […]

Should Governments be Able to Ban Books?

As of 2017 the most commonly banned book in America is a graphic novel for teenagers, This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki. All of the top five most banned feature LGBT characters. Out of the top ten all but two were written for grade school students (Banned). The censorship of books is a global phenomenon, employed by the governments of some countries like Iran and Russia to limit available knowledge to the public as a way of furthering their own […]

The War on Cloning

When an individual think of cloning, one usually thinks of the Storm Troopers in Star Wars or of an evil scientist in a dark laboratory full of scary instruments and test tubes everywhere, when actually the word clone means, A cell or organism that is genetically identical to the unit or individual from which was derived (Dictionary, 2018). For the past 50 years scientist have found different variations and solutions for cloning. The perfect example would be Dolly the sheep. […]

Censorship in the Literature

Censorship is defined as the practice of removing explicit, vulgar, and highly objectional material. Free expression is one of the base roots for the first amendment, although the first right had been tested and altered throughout time. From elementary to secondary education, books have been banned for racial issues, sexually explicit, offensive language, and many more reasons to protect kids. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was banned based on the racism in the book, but in 1885 when the book […]

About a Radio Censorship

The results from an anonymous poll on debate.org, had an outcome of, out of 100%, 85% say radio should not be censored, while 15% say radio should be censored. Censorship has been a debate for a while, things such as, books, movies, articles, pictures, videos, and music are censored. Music should be censored for the protection of young, innocent children. Although federal law prevents immoral and vulgar content from being publicized, who decides what music is censored and, how do […]

About Art Censorship

A beautiful art The birth of venus that was created by William Adolphe Bouguereau in 1879 was censored within all of his hard work. Some people dont understand that art is meant to create a reaction and what is offensive to one person might not be offensive to another. In many country creativity has been very valuable but many people couldnt see it in the same perspective as we did. Many people know creativity came from hard work and try […]

About a Censorship

With more than 336 million monthly active users worldwide as of the first quarter of 2018, Twitter is one of the biggest social networks worldwide (statista 1). With that many user accounts on twitter, it goes to show how powerful social media platforms have become. Many times, when content is posted online, the words, ideas, music, images, etc. can be taken out of context and if enough attention is given to it, then it is censored. Content censorship occurs regularly […]

Ray Bradburyr’s Fahrenheit 451 and Censorship

In Ray Bradburyr’s Fahrenheit 451, people live in a society full of censorship. It is about a future where all books are burned because the people decided that knowledge brings pain. In the first hard cover edition, Neil Gaiman wrote the Introduction (April 2013) for Fahrenheit 451 (xi). He stated the following: This is a book of warning. It is a reminder that what we have is valuable, and that sometimes we take what we value for granted. Censorship is […]

Censorship Laws and Cultural Norms

The 1960r’s film, Psycho challenged censorship laws and cultural norms at the time of its release. Movies and film influence the perceptions and ideas of the mass culture, especially in America by portraying underlying attitudes and beliefs that the culture holds. Because of this, film has made itself an integral component of the culture by influencing it with the underlying themes which are already present but are often unspoken. While censorship was stricter in the past, the idea of censoring […]

Censorship in Academia

Historically, institutions of higher-education have been a bastion for free speech and the exploration of ideas. Academia should be a community where ideas can be openly discussed and criticized. However, this element of academia is being threatened. In recent years some topics have become off limits because they are considered distressing, offensive, or controversial. Some examples of suppression of free expression were the highly publicized student-protests against right-wing guest speakers at several universities and colleges this past year. Two that […]

The First Amendment and Internet

According to the Constitution, the First Amendment states that Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech (Volokh). This amendment allows citizens to freely express their ideas through written/spoken words and media such as pictures and films. However, at the same time, they are exposed to a wide range of public opinions and views that may come into conflict with their own personal beliefs and cause discomfort. With media becoming more accessible and public, more facts, opinions, and […]

Anti-Semitism and the First Amendment

Thesis statement: Any form of anti-Semitic hate speech in the United States should not be given First Amendment protection as it has proven to cause violence. Introduction: The American Library Association defines free speech in the United States and mentions that it is founded in a belief that freedom of speech requires the government to strictly protect robust debate on matters of public concern even when such debate devolves into distasteful, offensive, or hateful speech that causes others to feel […]

Mainstream Media in a Democracy

Every citizen in their given country has the chance to vote and elect these representatives and people in power. Power can also be held directly by the people themselves as well. In a democracy, there is a belief of freedom and equality amongst the people as well as a system that is put in place based on these beliefs. Explain role of media in a democracy: The role of media in democracy has grown immensely in the last couple of […]

Mainstream Media Supports a Democracy

How is it that mainstream media supports a democracy? Simple. Freedom of speech and expression that helps engage the public. A democracy is a form of government in which people can freely govern themselves as well as given power to elected representatives. Every citizen in their given country has the chance to vote and elect these representatives and people in power. Power can also be held directly by the people themselves as well. In a democracy, there is a belief […]

Music Censorship

The Beatles were denied airplay as their songs such as “A Day in the Life” and “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds” were related to the use of the drug. Prodigy song, “Smack My Bitch Up” was banned because it was degrading the female. Eminem song, “Relapse” was censored because it had a lot of blood and it was deemed too scary for TV watchers. Mathangi Arulpragasam suffered censorship because the censor viewed the song, “Late Night With Dave Letterman” […]

Mooting Bundle

WRITTEN SUBMISSION BY CO-COUNSEL FOR APPLICANT A. ISSUES TO BE DISPUTED Whether Section 15A of the UUCA is unconstitutional as it violates the right to freedom of speech, assembly and/or association provided for by Article 10(1) of the Federal Constitution. B. WRITTEN SUBMISSION First submission Section 15A of the UUCA contravenes Article 10(1) of the Federal Constitution. According to Section 15A of the Universities and University Colleges Act 1971, it is prohibited for a student, or an organization, body, or […]

Handyside V United Kingdom

Title: “Freedom of expression constitutes one of the essential foundations of …a [democratic]society…[It]is applicable not only to ‘information’ or ‘ideas’ that are favourably received or regarded as inoffensive or as a matter of indifference, but also to those that offend, shock or disturb the state or any sector of the population.” Handyside v United Kingdom Essay on Freedom of Expression The case of Handyside v United Kingdom (1979) is a prime example of the competing issues faced by the Courts […]

Canadian and International Law

Human Rights Violations – Freedom of Expression If individuals were asked to immediately list a few things that they could not imagine life without, many would instantly think of food, water, family, and shelter. However, equally important are the rights that humans must be provided with by the country in which they reside in. Even if one had all the things previously mentioned, they would not be very useful if one was not allowed to live by his/her wishes. Everyone […]

Social Dynamics and Ethics

Research Objective: A quantification of social dynamics and ethics in global society. It is the aim of this project to assess the relative reaction of newspapers and their readers to the publishing of the Muhammad cartoons in various parts of the World. Since the Muhammad cartoons will obviously have generated the most anger in the Middle East and North Africa; we have chosen to ignore those major regions. The regions we focus on are: The United States of America Great […]

Essays on Freedom of Speech