The Eight Values of Freedom of Expression

Freedom of expression is very important for a country. If a nation doesn't allow it's citizens to express themselves, then they have no culture, and nobody will be happy. Restricting how people can express themselves can lead to an unhappy population, which often leads to violence and uprising, so to mitigate this risk, governments must allow their citizens the freedom to express themselves. There are eight theories within freedom of expression that scholars use to defend and endorse freedom of expression, each one offering a new and different point of view on why it is so necessary.

John Milton

1.  Marketplace of Ideas

Also known as "the discovery of truth", John Milton argued that there shouldn't be a required license to print or publish.

Alexander Meiklejohn 

2. Participation in Self Government

Alexander Meiklejohn argued that if people are restricted in what they can say or publish, then citizens can't make informed and educated decisions when voting.

Baruch Spinoza

3. Stable Change

Also called the "safety valve", it was argued by Baruch Spinoza that allowing angry and upset citizens to vent their frustrations and speak their minds will make them more stable and less likely to act out violently or disruptively.

C. Edwin Baker

4. Individual Self-Fulfillment

Also known as "self actualization", free speech allows individuals to express themselves and fin an identity, which C. Edwin Baker says is a core piece of human dignity and autonomy.

Vince Blasi

5. Check on Governmental Power

Also called the "watchdog rule", Vince Blasi is a notable voice in arguing that free press is how citizens learn about corruption and other abuses of power within the government, and without this knowledge they cannot make educated decisions when voting.

Lee Bollinger

6. Promote Tolerance

Lee Bollinger said that if upsetting or harmful free speech is protected, then society becomes more tolerant to it other issues, however we learn how hate speech is harmful by allowing then condemning it.

Jack Balkin

7. Promote Innovation

Jack Balkin argued that communities that value and protect free speech evolve into a more energized and creative society when citizens can use those freedoms to fulfill themselves. 

Steve Shiffrin

8. Protect Dissent

Steve Shiffrin argued that the First Amendment serves as a guard against mob rule by protection unpopular, minority viewpoints; everyone has the right to disagree with the government and other people, and they should express it if they do.

The one of these eight values of freedom of expression that I believe to be the most relevant in today's society is participation in self government. In the age of social media, more people now have a platform to voice their opinions and speak their minds, no matter who they are. Now that individuals have platforms to speak, not only TV shows and news stations, we get to hear the voices of the little guy who might know something or is irrelevant enough to investigate issues more freely than a reporter. With this, people are more frequently exposing abuses of power, which then the abusers attempt to silence them. An example of this that we can see today is something that I've talked about before, the "Stop Nick Shirley Act" in California, an attempt to silence reporters exposing fraudulent activity and abuses of power. If citizens are not allowed to speak up when they find instances and acts of government inadequacies involving abuse of power and fraud, then people can't make informed decisions at the ballot box, and those in power can keep abusing their power to help themselves and hurt citizens. 

It seems today that the marketplace of ideas is larger and offers more freedom than ever before, 

Nick Shirley

with countless social media platforms and the ability to speak freely in public. Although they do restrict hate speech and inappropriate content, people are free to post and discuss just about any topic you could think of. This freedom of expression leads to more things being said and published that lead to instances of governments and companies attempting to silence and restrict people.

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AI DISCLOSURE

AI was not used in the writing of this blog post.