National Censorship Research

Censorship has been a touchy topic over the past few years. Everyone has their own opinion on the topic, but the fact is censorship is way more damaging than people may notice. First off, the definition of censorship is to restrain, block, and censor ideas and information that some may find offensive. The basic definition of censorship completely violates the First Amendment. We, as Americans, have the right to Freedom of Speech. Censorship blocks that by blocking anything some may find offensive. It’s not fair because they’re blocking out how people feel/think just because someone found it “offensive” or wrong. It completely contradicts the First Amendment. People have the right to know about the world and what’s happening. Keeping the

Censorship has been a big topic in America since the birth of its modern government. There are things that go on around the world that the media would never show its American viewers. This has also been seen in places like the military, where if a soldier were to send a letter back home, he or she can not disclose information such as their location. While it is a way to protect the American people from potential threats, it also restricts our freedom of speech. Everyone has the right to speak his or her mind; whether you agree with an idea or not is always a conscious choice. An

Censorship is defined as ‘blocking something from being read, heard or seen.’ It has been used since Roman times, where they believed censoring information was a way to ‘shape the people’. Today, many people are convinced that censorship is a political tool employed to deprive citizens of their right to freedom of speech. However, the definition of the word ‘censorship’ does not have any negative connotations. In fact, it is rather neutral. That being so, there ought to be circumstances where censorship is an irreproachable technique - to benefit society, in contrast to the detrimental effects it is said to have.

Censorship is a tool used by the predominant power to maintain status-quo and stifle those who would challenge their assumptions by written word or speech. Freedom of speech is designed to allow voices, no matter how objectionable they are to the majority, the ability to express themselves without fear of reprisal. the only defense the people have against a tyrannical government is a well informed electorate; and the only way to insure a well informed electorate is with a free and open press.

In 1791, the United States adopted the first amendment, which states that “Congress shall make no law 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 (Ivers, 2013).” The freedom of speech that is documented in the First Amendment is not only constitutional protected, but it’s also a very important part of the democratic government independence, which holds essential values in our society. American citizen’s right to free speech should be held as one of the highest virtue and any censorship of freedom of speech should not be allowed, but only respected

When you think of the word, “censorship”, what do you think of? Secrecy? Morality? Oppression? Liberals often see censorship as a limit set by the government. A limit to suppress the capabilities of the human race. A limit that keeps a country’s citizens intact. A limit that keeps the people ignorant so that the powerful can stay powerful. But what if I told you that censorship isn’t what the liberals say it is? What if I told you that censorship is the thing that is keeping our country together? Ladies, gentlemen, and other, censorship is not oppression. Censorship is what protects the freedoms, morality, and safety of the people.

I read a pair of articles recently where two writers debated the censorship of a comic strip. The strip poked fun at a past president suffering from Alzheimer’s. One writer took the stance that censorship is never acceptable and the other seemed to take the stance that under compassionate circumstances censorship is acceptable. Now before I get into what I think I want to highlight the previous and current season of South Park. They are addressing the issue of modern political correctness with great depth and humor. I also must confess that I am a liberal and socially progressive, however, in this article I will betray what I like to think of as a sect within a larger pool; the sect being social justice warriors and the pool being people who

There was also censorship in WWII, mainly focusing on military security, though anything depicting the enemy as human was surely censored. This war had less censorship than previous wars (Abo, 2017). Another media that has been affected by censorship is the radio. The radio was feared by the government in its early stages of life. They feared the amount of power this new media could obtain on the public that they began to promote a monopoly radio network, excluding and essentially attempting (and succeeding) in ending the small non-profit stations. Most of these stations that the government felt unsettled by ended up giving up or joining NBC (Abo, 2017). The issue with censoring is that the news, films, radio shows, etc. are all being limited to what the public can get informed on. Whether it be moral depictions in movies, real updates on what the current state of wars are and so on. Not all censorship is negative – there are some specific things that people should not see (i.e. children) but societies being deprived of information they are entitled to is what causes some censorship to become an issue.

The United States Bill of Rights guarantees its citizens the freedom of expression, but how far does that freedom extend? Does the right to express yourself include the right to observe the expressions of others? According to pro-censorship view holders, it does not. But to those who feel strongly against censorship, the freedom of information, or the “right to know,” should be an absolute right granted to the American public. Censoring material is the responsibility of the individual, not the institution itself, and certainly not the job of a separate institution. Also, the definition of what is censor-worthy is by no means clear.

Censorship has existed for longer than we could ever imagine. One of the first acts of state sponsored censorship occurred in 399 B.C. when Socrates, was executed for the “supposed common good of the people” (Guarding Public Morality, 2010, p.1). Socrates was a teacher and a philosopher in ancient Greece. His teaching methods were controversial for the time, and he was charged with corrupting the youth and drawing them away from the Greek religion. As a result of his actions, Socrates was sentenced to death by drinking a poisonous liquid containing hemlock (Guarding Public Morality, 2010, p. 1).

Are we protected from censorship under the First Amendment? In other words do people or groups have the right to examine material and remove or prohibit anything they consider objectionable? This argument has been progressing for hundreds of years, the first notable case was against John Peter Zenger, in 1743. Zenger was an editor of a New York colonial newspaper that often published articles that criticised the colony's governor. He successfully argued that publishing the truth should be a defense and thus defied the conventional wisdom and ended colonial intrusion into freedom of the press (Harer 21). Since that case, the progression through time has expanded matters to the complicated issues we see today. The founders of the United

“For everything that needs to be said there are always these things that never should be” (Witherbee). This statement has rung true for many generations and for many reasons. Censorship helps solve this problem within T.V. shows, art, media, internet, and advertisements. In the world today people are easily offended and some people use information to their advantage. Despite what some people might believe, there are people in America that can use uncensored information to hinder the productivity of the country to benefit themselves or another country. Censorship is necessary to protect different groups and people.

Freedom of speech is our most cherished right as Americans, given to us by the First Amendment in the U.S. Constitution. But is that right taken away when the government controls what we see, say, or hear? Censorship is the annihilation of speech or other public forms communication, which may be considered unacceptable, harmful, and useless. The government can keep people from seeing content in the media by discarding it and only letting the public see what the government wants them to see. Censorship can happen on a national level like explained above, or it can happen on a more local level. For example, religious schools could remove the theory of evolution from the school curriculum to prevent the children from having a different idea on how the world started. Is it right to remove certain parts from television shows, promote or restrict political or religious views, and keep information away from the American public? I believe that censorship is necessary, but only in some cases.

Censorship has been used by governments and influential groups throughout history as a tool for political and economic gain since ancient times. The Romans thought censorship was necessary to shape the morals of society to match up with government ideals. During the 1500's the Catholic Church banned certain texts that conflicted with the established religion from being read. In these times the idea of censorship was viewed differently that it is today. With powerful organizations limiting information it was often impossible for an average person to obtain literature or hear ideas that vary from state ideals, they probably didn't even know that their information was being censored. We live in a different age today, information is more

When people hear the word “censorship,” it generally incites feelings of dread and Orwellian control. Though this is sometimes true, it is not