Freedom of Speech, Press, and Assembly
Supreme Court Pornography Cases
Supreme Court cases pertaining to pornography.
History of Newspaper Censorship
A brief timeline history of newspaper censorship.
History of Banned Books Censorship
A brief timeline history of banned books censorship.
History of Censorship in Schools
A brief timeline history of censorship in schools.
History of Internet Censorship
A brief timeline history of Internet censorship.
History of Comic Book Censorship
A brief timeline history of comic book censorship.
History of Music Censorship
A brief timeline history of music censorship.
History of Art Censorship
A timeline history of art censorship.
History of Television Censorship
A history of television censorship, in timeline format.
Anthony Comstock
Learn about Anthony Comstock, the mad censor of New York.
Radio Censorship
A history of radio censorship.
Press Censorship in the United States
A short history of press censorship in the United States.
History of Film Censorship
A timeline history of film censorship.
History of Copyright
A timeline history of copyright.
History of Pornography
The history of pornography, from 5200 BCE to the present.
History of Flag Burning Laws - History of U.S. Laws Against Flag Desecration
The United States began banning flag desecration in the late 19th century. Although the Supreme Court put an end to these laws in 1989, some lawmakers are still attempting to reinstate them.
McCarthyism
A timeline history of McCarthyism, covering the period from 1946 to the present.
Hate Speech Cases
A list of landmark Supreme Court cases on hate speech and the First Amendment.
The Miller Test
Definition of the Miller test.
Does Hate Crime Legislation Threaten Free Speech?
Does hate crime legislation threaten free speech?
The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)
A guide to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), with definition, links to full text of the bill, and other resources.
The Open Government Directive (OGD)
Definition and explanation of the Open Government Directive (OGD), established by the Barack Obama administration on his first day in office.
Nipplegate
Definition of nipplegate.
Censorship in the United States
The right to free speech is a longstanding U.S. tradition, but actually respecting the right to free speech is not.
Crossing the Line
Remembering the life of George Carlin, and its impact on free speech.
Review: 'This Film is Not Yet Rated'
A review of "This Film is Not Yet Rated" (2006), a film by documentarian Kirby Dick.
Free Speech 101
An overview of important free speech issues, with links to in-depth coverage.
Newt Gingrich and Free Speech: A New Sedition Act?
On November 27th, 2006, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich argued that free speech should not receive the same level of protection in the post-9/11 world that it has in the past.
The Child Online Protection Act (COPA) of 1998
If upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court, the Child Online Protection Act (COPA) of 1998 would impose harsh criminal penalties on any material the government deems "harmful to minors."
"Obscene" Literary Classics
Ten great literary classics that were targeted by obscenity trials. Includes James Joyce's "Ulysses," D.H. Lawrence's "Lady Chatterley's Lover," Gustave Flaubert's "Madame Bovary," Arundhati Roy's "The God of Small Things," Allan Ginsberg's "Howl and Other Poems," William S. Burroughs' "Naked Lunch," Henry Miller's "Tropic of Cancer," Radclyffe Hall's "The Well of Loneliness," John Cleland's "Fanny Hill," and more.
Winners of the Thomas Jefferson Center's 2006 Muzzle Awards
Looking for the Muzzle Awards given in 2006 by the Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression? Look here for awards won by George W. Bush and the U.S. Department of Justice.
Court Decisions on Free Speech
Atheism and Agnosticism Guide Austin Cline reviews landmark cases in the history of American free speech.
Order vs. Liberty: The Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798
Less than a decade after James Madison proposed the Bill of Rights, President John Adams signed the Sedition Act into law. The bill, which made it illegal to criticize government officials under certain circumstances, was targeted at supporters of Adams' strongest challenger, Thomas Jefferson. About.com American History Guide Martin Kelly reports.
Politics and Journalism as Spectacle
The First Amendment's guarantee of a free press assumes a press free of government control. Today, the greater immediate threat to a free press is corporate control. Austin Cline, your About.com Guide to Atheism and Agnosticism, explains.
Emma Goldman - Feminist and Free Speech Activist
About.com Women's History Guide Jone Johnson Lewis profiles the anarcho-socialist activist Emma Goldman (1869-1940), who was targeted by the U.S. government for her opinions during the first Red Scare of the late 1910s.
Radio in Persecution: A Chronology of Recent FCC Actions
Radio Guide Corey Deitz provides a timeline of FCC action during 2004 and 2005, at the height of the anti-indecency campaign.
The American Civil Liberties Union - Free Speech
The ACLU's advocacy page for free speech issues, with up-to-the-minute news, links, and special reports.
Civil Liberties and the Internet
A summary and timeline describing the relationship between the Internet and civil liberties, with emphasis on free speech.
Freedom of Assembly in the United States
A timeline history of freedom of assembly in the United States.
Freedom of the Press in the United States
A timeline history of press freedom in the United States.
Freedom of Speech in the United States
A timeline history of freedom of speech in the United States.
Indecency and the FCC
A timeline history of the FCC and broadcast indecency decisions.
Obscenity in the United States
A timeline history of obscenity in the United States.
Sedition Act of 1918
The text, origins, and meaning of the Sedition Act of 1918.