a biography of the First Amendment Lewis, Anthony 1927-2013 creator text bibliography nyu New York Perseus Books Group 2007 monographic eng

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xv, 221 pages ; 22 cm. More than any other people on earth, Americans are free to say and write what they think. The media can air the secrets of the White House, the boardroom, or the bedroom with little fear of punishment or penalty. The reason for this extraordinary freedom is not a superior culture of tolerance, but just fourteen words in our most fundamental legal document: the free expression clauses of the First Amendment to the Constitution. In this book, the story of how the right of free expression evolved along with our nation makes a compelling case for the adaptability of our constitution. Although Americans have gleefully and sometimes outrageously exercised their right to free speech since before the nation's founding, the Supreme Court did not begin to recognize this right until 1919. Freedom of speech and the press as we know it today is surprisingly recent. The author tells us how these rights were created, revealing a story of hard choices, heroic (and some less heroic) judges, and fascinating and eccentric defendants who forced the legal system to come face-to-face with one of America's great founding ideas. Beginnings -- 'Odious or contemptible' -- "As all life is an experiment" -- Defining freedom -- Freedom and privacy -- A press privilege? -- Fear itself -- 'Another's lyric' -- 'Vagabonds and outlaws' -- Thoughts that we hate -- Balancing interests -- Freedom of thought. Anthony Lewis. Located in the Library at the Center for the Study of Religious Freedom. Clarke Hall. Includes bibliographical references and index. Freedom of speech United States Freedom of the press United States Freedom of speech Freedom of the press United States KF 4770 .L49 2007 342.7308/53 9780465039173 0465039170 2007040249 http://catdir.loc.gov/catdir/enhancements/fy0833/2007040249-d.html http://catdir.loc.gov/catdir/enhancements/fy0833/2007040249-b.html http://catdir.loc.gov/catdir/enhancements/fy0833/2007040249-d.html http://catdir.loc.gov/catdir/enhancements/fy0833/2007040249-b.html PUCPR 071001 20240312115307.0 ocn752308712 eng