Speech Stories

How Free Can Speech Be?

Nonfiction, Reference & Language, Law, Civil Rights
Cover of the book Speech Stories by Randall P. Bezanson, NYU Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Randall P. Bezanson ISBN: 9780814786154
Publisher: NYU Press Publication: February 1, 1998
Imprint: NYU Press Language: English
Author: Randall P. Bezanson
ISBN: 9780814786154
Publisher: NYU Press
Publication: February 1, 1998
Imprint: NYU Press
Language: English

When we talk about what "freedom of speech" means in America, the discussion almost always centers on freedom rather than speech. Taking for granted that speech is an unambiguous and stable category, we move to considering how much freedom speech should enjoy. But, as Randall Bezanson demonstrates in Speech Stories, speech is a much more complicated and dynamic notion than we often assume. In an age of rapidly accelerated changes in discourse combined with new technologies of communication, the boundaries and substance of what we traditionally deem speech are being reconfigured in novel and confusing ways.
In order to spark thought, discussion, and debate about these complexities and ambiguities, Bezanson probes the "stories" behind seven controversial free speech cases decided by the Supreme Court. These stories touch upon the most controversial and significant of contemporary first amendment issues: government restrictions on hate speech and obscene and indecent speech; pornography and the subordination of women; the constitutionality of campaign finance reform; and the treatment to be accorded new technologies of communication under the Constitution. The result is a provocative engagement of the reader in thinking about the puzzles and paradoxes of our commitment to free expression.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

When we talk about what "freedom of speech" means in America, the discussion almost always centers on freedom rather than speech. Taking for granted that speech is an unambiguous and stable category, we move to considering how much freedom speech should enjoy. But, as Randall Bezanson demonstrates in Speech Stories, speech is a much more complicated and dynamic notion than we often assume. In an age of rapidly accelerated changes in discourse combined with new technologies of communication, the boundaries and substance of what we traditionally deem speech are being reconfigured in novel and confusing ways.
In order to spark thought, discussion, and debate about these complexities and ambiguities, Bezanson probes the "stories" behind seven controversial free speech cases decided by the Supreme Court. These stories touch upon the most controversial and significant of contemporary first amendment issues: government restrictions on hate speech and obscene and indecent speech; pornography and the subordination of women; the constitutionality of campaign finance reform; and the treatment to be accorded new technologies of communication under the Constitution. The result is a provocative engagement of the reader in thinking about the puzzles and paradoxes of our commitment to free expression.

More books from NYU Press

Cover of the book Original Sin by Randall P. Bezanson
Cover of the book Mothers Who Kill Their Children by Randall P. Bezanson
Cover of the book The Gay Baby Boom by Randall P. Bezanson
Cover of the book Aksum and Nubia by Randall P. Bezanson
Cover of the book The Truth About Freud's Technique by Randall P. Bezanson
Cover of the book The American Judaism of Mordecai M. Kaplan by Randall P. Bezanson
Cover of the book A Biography of a Map in Motion by Randall P. Bezanson
Cover of the book Sexual Futures, Queer Gestures, and Other Latina Longings by Randall P. Bezanson
Cover of the book The Civil War Soldier by Randall P. Bezanson
Cover of the book Toxic Shock by Randall P. Bezanson
Cover of the book Our Schools Suck by Randall P. Bezanson
Cover of the book Ireland by Randall P. Bezanson
Cover of the book Rape and the Culture of the Courtroom by Randall P. Bezanson
Cover of the book Qualitative Data by Randall P. Bezanson
Cover of the book Jews on the Frontier by Randall P. Bezanson
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy