Freedom of Speech Right
A Freedom of Speech Right is a civil right to be able to express one's opinion without constraint from other agents (without fear of government censorship, retribution, or societal sanction).
- Context:
- It can (typically) be supported by a Free-Speech Position.
- It can be a foundational principle of a Democratic Society.
- It can be measured by a Freedom of Speech Measure.
- It can be contravened by a Free Speech Restriction (possibly due to: libel, slander, obscenity, ...).
- It can be instantiated in a Freedom of Speech Law.
- It can vary in its scope and limitations based on cultural, historical, and political factors.
- It can include not only verbal communication but also expression through art, music, and other forms of media.
- It can be subject to certain limitations such as laws against Hate Speech, Defamation, and Incitement to Violence.
- It can be a subject of debate and interpretation in Legal Cases and Academic Discourse.
- It can intersect with other rights and freedoms, such as Freedom of the Press and Right to Privacy.
- ...
- Example(s):
- as expressed in:
- a U.S. First Amendment's passage: “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.”
- “If we don’t believe in freedom of expression for people we despise, we don’t believe in it at all.” – Noam Chomsky.
- “Two things form the bedrock of any open society: freedom of expression and rule of law. If you don’t have those things, you don’t have a free country.” – Salman Rushdie.
- The Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which upholds the right to freedom of opinion and expression.
- The use of Social Media as a platform for exercising freedom of speech.
- …
- as expressed in:
- Counter-Example(s):
- a Censorship Right / Censorship Law that restricts freedom of speech for political reasons.
- A Social Taboo that inhibits open discussion on certain topics.
- a Right to Privacy.
- a Freedom of Association.
- a Freedom of Movement.
- a Freedom of Religion.
- a Libel Law, or a Slander Law, or a Hate Speech Law.
- See: Freedom of Expression, Moral Responsibility, Obscenity, Pornography, Sedition, Hate Speech, Incitement, Fighting Words, Classified Information, Copyright Violation, Rule of Law, Wokeness.
References
2023
- GBard
- Freedom of speech is a fundamental human right that is enshrined in many international and national legal documents. It is the right to express oneself without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. This includes the right to express unpopular, controversial, or offensive views.
- Freedom of speech is essential for a healthy democracy. It allows for the exchange of ideas, the development of new perspectives, and the holding of government accountable. It also protects individuals from being silenced by those in power.
- However, freedom of speech is not absolute. It can be limited in certain circumstances, such as when it is used to incite violence or hate speech. In these cases, the government may have a legitimate interest in restricting speech in order to protect the safety and well-being of its citizens.
- The balance between freedom of speech and other competing interests is a complex and delicate one. There is no easy answer to the question of how much speech should be protected. Ultimately, it is up to each society to decide how to strike this balance.
- Here are some of the key arguments for and against freedom of speech:
- Arguments for freedom of speech:
It is essential for a healthy democracy. It allows for the exchange of ideas and the development of new perspectives. It protects individuals from being silenced by those in power. It promotes tolerance and understanding.
- Arguments against freedom of speech:
It can be used to incite violence or hate speech. It can harm the reputation of others. It can cause offense or distress. It can be used to spread misinformation or propaganda.
2022
- (Wikipedia, 2022) ⇒ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_of_speech Retrieved:2022-12-13.
- Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recognised as a human right in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and international human rights law by the United Nations. Many countries have constitutional law that protects free speech. Terms like free speech, freedom of speech, and freedom of expression are used interchangeably in political discourse. However, in a legal sense, the freedom of expression includes any activity of seeking, receiving, and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used.
Article 19 of the UDHR states that "everyone shall have the right to hold opinions without interference" and "everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right shall include freedom to seek, receive, and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any other media of his choice". The version of Article 19 in the ICCPR later amends this by stating that the exercise of these rights carries "special duties and responsibilities" and may "therefore be subject to certain restrictions" when necessary "[f]or respect of the rights or reputation of others" or "[f]or the protection of national security or of public order (order public), or of public health or morals".
Freedom of speech and expression, therefore, may not be recognized as being absolute, and common limitations or boundaries to freedom of speech relate to libel, slander, obscenity, pornography, sedition, incitement, fighting words, hate speech, classified information, copyright violation, trade secrets, food labeling, non-disclosure agreements, the right to privacy, dignity, the right to be forgotten, public security, and perjury. Justifications for such include the harm principle, proposed by John Stuart Mill in On Liberty, which suggests that "the only purpose for which power can be rightfully exercised over any member of a civilized community, against his will, is to prevent harm to others".
The idea of the "offense principle" is also used to justify speech limitations, describing the restriction on forms of expression deemed offensive to society, considering factors such as extent, duration, motives of the speaker, and ease with which it could be avoided.[1] With the evolution of the digital age, application of freedom of speech becomes more controversial as new means of communication and restrictions arise, for example, the Golden Shield Project, an initiative by Chinese government's Ministry of Public Security that filters potentially unfavourable data from foreign countries.
The Human Rights Measurement Initiative measures the right to opinion and expression for countries around the world, using a survey of in-country human rights experts.
- Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recognised as a human right in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and international human rights law by the United Nations. Many countries have constitutional law that protects free speech. Terms like free speech, freedom of speech, and freedom of expression are used interchangeably in political discourse. However, in a legal sense, the freedom of expression includes any activity of seeking, receiving, and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used.
- ↑ van Mill, David (1 January 2016). Zalta, Edward N. (ed.). The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2016 ed.). Archived from the original on 18 March 2019. Retrieved 12 October 2016.
2018
- (Wikipedia, 2018) ⇒ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_of_speech Retrieved:2018-7-26.
- Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or sanction. The term "freedom of expression" is sometimes used synonymously but includes any act of seeking, receiving, and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used. ...
2018b
- (The Guardian, 2018) ⇒ The free speech panic: how the right concocted a crisis
- QUOTE: Everyone knows free speech is under attack ... The danger posed by the “student Stasi” isn’t just tyranny on campus: core enlightenment values of individual liberty and reason are under threat. This alarming narrative can now be found in news stories, political speeches and op-ed columns ...
In many ways, speech has never been freer than it is today, including speech that is hostile, emotional and potentially extreme. The traditional barriers and gatekeepers that used to restrict access to the public sphere and the intellectual canon are losing power,
- QUOTE: Everyone knows free speech is under attack ... The danger posed by the “student Stasi” isn’t just tyranny on campus: core enlightenment values of individual liberty and reason are under threat. This alarming narrative can now be found in news stories, political speeches and op-ed columns ...
2016
- (Walsh, 2016) ⇒ Toby Walsh. (2016). “Turing's Red Flag.” In: Communications of the ACM Journal, 59(7). doi:10.1145/2838729
- QUOTE: Turing Red Flag law: An autonomous system should be designed so that it is unlikely to be mistaken for anything besides an autonomous system, and should identify itself at the start of any interaction with another agent.
2004
- (Raaflaub, 2004) ⇒ Kurt A. Raaflaub. (2004). “Chapter Three - ARISTOCRACY AND FREEDOM OF SPEECH IN THE GRECO-ROMAN WORLD.” In: Free Speech in Classical Antiquity.
1859
- (Mill, 1859) ⇒ John Stuart Mill. (1859). “On Liberty."