The Eight Values of Free Expression are the culmination of hundreds or maybe even thousands of years of thinking and discussion from major philosophers and political figures all throughout history. The First Amendment of the U.S. constitution was radical at the time of its drafting. Nowhere else in the world were you not only allowed to criticize the government, but encouraged to. This type of radical thinking led to what we can now refer to as the Eight Values of Free Expression, which are as follows:
1. The Market Place of Ideas- This value was first suggested by Milton, who first said that when truth and falsehood are allowed to freely grapple, truth will win out. And the grappling makes the truth even stronger. His argument against requiring a license to print/publish.
2. Participation in Self Government- It has been suggested that citizens will not make wise and informed choices in elections if candidates and proponents of certain policies are restricted in their ability to communicate positions. We want an informed electorate involved in debate.
3. Stable Change- It has been suggested that a society in which angry and alienated citizens are allowed to speak their mind, or "vent," will be more stable, as people will be less likely to resort to violence. It has also been pointed out that allowing the alienated and discontented to speak freely enables government to better monitor potentially dangerous groups who would otherwise act more clandestinely. Ultimately, it is in the governments own self-interest to allow such venting.
4. Individual Self-Fulfillment- Free speech enables individuals to express themselves and thereby create their own identity — and, in the process perhaps, find kindred spirits. Freedom of speech thus becomes an aspect of human dignity, human agency and autonomy.
5. Check on Governmental Power- As Watergate, Irangate, Clintongate and all the other "gates" demonstrate, freedom of the press enables citizens to learn about abuses of power — and then do something about the abuse at the ballot box if they feel so moved. We, along with the press, are part of the check-and-balance system to restrains government power and abuse of power.6. Promote Tolerance- It has been argued that freedom of speech, especially through our practice of extending protection to speech that we find hateful or personally upsetting, teaches us to become more tolerant in other aspects of life — and that a more tolerant society is a better society. Somewhat counter-intuitive, the First Amendment protects hate speech because society learns valuable lessons from, including why it is hateful and worthy of condemnation. It’s how we spread norms about acceptable behavior.
7. Promote Innovation- A community in which free speech is valued and protected is likely to be a more energized, creative, interesting society as its citizens actively fulfill themselves in many diverse and interesting ways.8. Protect Dissent- Our system is not supposed to be one of mob rule. The First Amendment protects minority views, no matter how unpopular. You have a strongly protected right to disagree with the government — and everyone else. In fact, it is your patriotic duty to criticize the government.
Before continuing, it is important to note that I used the summaries listed in the class blog due to the fact that I found them to be as concise and accurate as anything I could write myself. They are fantastic summaries of what each truly means, and they are one of the sources which I am using as the basis of the eight values I have determined to be the most necessary and important today.
Out of these eight values, I found five of them particularly necessary and helpful to American society today. The five which I have selected are:
1) The Market Place of Ideas
2) Stable Change
3) Check on Governmental Power
4) Promote Tolerance
5) Protect Dissent
The Market Place of Ideas
Firstly, the market place of ideas is a beautiful principle. It is reflective of so many other patterns we see in American culture. Even in pop-culture, we see a similar theme of good vs. evil, and the belief that if they are allowed to fight in out, then good will win. Similarly, this belief suggests that if truth and falsehood are allowed to battle it out, then the truth will eventually win. I have always been of the belief that is of great importance to society to allow controversial, inflammatory, or even downright wrong points of view to be heard. This relates back to the concept of prior restraint vs subsequent punishment. A society which can trust its citizens to use their power as individuals to punish those who practice evil rhetoric is much more healthy and free than a society which counts on the government to dole out these punishments or decide what beliefs people are allowed to hold. This partially relates back to a concept which James Madison introduces in the 10th installment of The Federalist Papers, under the pseudonym Publius.
In Federalist Paper No. 10, Madison expresses concern over the United States becoming too divided by factionalism, and instead argues for a concept which he calls pluralism. Madison believed that in something such as the two-party system which the United States employs today, too much division and polarization will occur. Additionally, he worries that it will allow a much higher likelihood of one ideology dominating all others in American society. Madison argues that the best way to ensure that neither of these dangerous concepts occur, is to have as many different opinions and points of view possible. This term was coined "pluralism."
Pluralism is "the idea that people of different cultures can coexist in society even though they have different political opinions. Pluralists believe that society benefits from various people with different beliefs equally participating in the same society." Madison, as a believer in this concept, would likely be appalled at the way in which our federal government tends to work in modern times. He would be appalled that parties attempt to freeze each other out of the government by winning the presidency, house, and senate. He would likely be even more appalled by the fact that a split in the house and senate often results in gridlock, meaning the government is unable to accomplish anything at all.
These are both primary examples of what Madison was afraid of with factionalism: factions attempting to completely shut the other one out of governmental affairs. The reality of this in modern America is exactly why I believe the Market Place of Ideas is one of the most important of the values of Free Expression.
Stable Change & Promotion of Tolerance
I chose to combine these two values because I believe that they both are relevant today for similar reasons. Both, in essence, are about the idea that it is in the best interest of the government or society to allow strongly negative opinions. They both point out the inevitability of citizens who disagree with decisions made by the government, or things deemed normal by the society which the government rules over.
Stable Change more closely relates to the people's right to openly stand against the government. It is the value of free expression which allows for a right to protest and peaceably assemble. The primary goal of a value such as this one is to make sure 1) that all citizens are heard and 2) ensure that there is almost no excuse for violence to occur.
The concept of stable change and of free speech as a whole often suffers the most during wartime. "Patriotism at times devolves into jingoism and civil liberties take a backseat to security and order." This has been seen already due to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Tucker Carlson, a prominent right-wing political commentator, has been under fire for suggesting that the United States should stay out of the conflict, and even suggesting that America has some blame to take in the conflict. It is important to note that Tucker did not support Russia or Ukraine in his statements, but rather urged people to consider why Russia is upset. Americans would not like Russian troops to be within 500 miles of DC. This is exactly the situation which Russia would have been placed in had Ukraine joined NATO. Russia had openly stated that they were against NATO expansion into Ukraine, and yet NATO continued doing so anyways.
Given all of these facts, why would a political commentator be labeled as un-American for reporting this information, and taking an anti-war stance? This is why the value of stable change is so important, as it exists to ensure that Americans who are angry about actions being taken by the government may be heard. This story also relates to the idea of Protecting Dissent, but that will be discussed later.
As for the Promotion of Tolerance, this idea is just as much a charge on the citizens as it is the government. The concept of hate speech is a hotly debated topic in the United States today. The Promotion of Tolerance is the value of free expression which causes it to be protected by the first amendment. The belief outlined in this idea is that it ultimately leads to a better society if hateful speech is allowed, excluding speech which directly incites violence. Michael Conklin, a professor at Angelo State, states in one of his papers that there are often overlooked benefits of allowing hate speech. He states that society's learn lessons on beliefs that are harmful by their vary nature and thus learn to avoid them as one example.
Overall, both the values of promoting tolerance and stable change are of critical importance to a society. Both of these ideals allow for all points of view to be heard, even if they are ideas which are admittedly hateful or wrong. Subsequent punishment by the citizens of a society rather than prior restraint executed by the government is a far more beneficial system of dealing with hateful ideologies.
Checks on Governmental Power
Checks on governmental power was one of the primary reasons why the first amendment was put into place. Having just freed themselves from an overly powerful government, the founding fathers wanted to ensure that this would never happen in their new nation. Because of this, they came up with the idea of checks and balances. One of the checks is the first amendment, as it allows both media and individual citizens to speak on government corruption and wrongdoings, without repercussions.
As discussed in the summary from earlier, the many "gates" which have occurred over the years are prime examples of why this is so necessary. One of the largest recent examples of why this value of expression is so necessary came with the story of Edward Snowden. In short, Edward Snowden leaked the information that the NSA had been illegally recording phone calls and texts of private citizens. This was a shocking (or not-so shocking, depending on who you ask) invasion of privacy by the United States government. This reveal caused an outrage among the American populace, who was already concerned with big-tech companies protecting their privacy.
This is just one of the many examples of why it is so important for both the press and individual citizen to check the power of the government. As outlined in Federalist Paper No. 51, man is a naturally ambitious creature, who will attempt to secure more and more power and act in his own self-interest if left unchecked. It is for this reason that there must be checks and balances, because ambition must be made to counteract ambition.
Protect Dissent
The protection of dissenting views is a value of free expression which I am as passionate about as any other. The United States government was set up in a way to prevent it from falling into mob rule. This is why the US was not setup as a pure democracy. I have always been critical of pure democracy as a system of government. This is because democracy, by its very nature, is the enemy of the minority. Democracy is just another term for "tyranny by the majority."
In order to ensure that a majority does not rise into unrestricted power, it is necessary to allow and even encourage points of view which dissent from the majority. Not only is dissension important in principle, it is also important pragmatically. Dissenting viewpoints promote innovation (notice: this is another value of free expression). Dissenting views are also an essential part of the Marketplace of Ideas. Even if the majority is correct, the dissenting view will then merely strengthen the legitimacy of the correct idea.
In conclusion, the United States was built on the principle of Free Expression. Starting even before the Revolutionary War with the phrase "no taxation without representation", America wanted to ensure that everybody had a voice in the government. They even set up an electoral college to ensure that the businessmen in the Northeast could not overrule the famers in the south and the midwest. America was built on the belief that everyone has a right to be heard, and this is why the first amendment is so important.
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