Press v. Broadcasting
The freedom of speech or of the
press is a hotly debated issue and how the First Amendment is interpreted to
establish the true meaning of “Freedom,”
as if applies to the access theory. These following two cases have been
passionately debated and now it being the 21st century, with all of the
internet and smartphone accessibility to express oneself and be connected, it
makes an individual deliberate where the line will be drawn and what the
consequences will be for this freedom.
The U.S. Supreme Court rejected
the access theory in, Miami Herald v.
Tornilla[1]and
reversed the decision made by the Florida State Supreme Court. The court stated
the statute in which the prior decision was made inferred with the guarantees
of a free press under the First Amendment.
The First Amendment does not give the government the right to force a
newspaper to publish views or ideas from a citizen and thus would interfere
with the editorial judgment about the choice of material in which to publish.
In Red Lion Broadcasting v. FCC[2], the
supreme court ruled the public has the right to receive what they consider
suitable access to social, political, esthetic, moral, and other ideas,
therefore embracing the access theory. The FCC limits the broadcast system by
only allowing a number of radio and television stations to broadcast; therefor
the government has the obligation of protecting the public interest.
The courts made the distinction
between the print and broadcast media in the above cases by rationalizing there
would be unlimited voices in the press. Meaning that there is no regulation on
how many newspapers, magazines, etc. there could be in business. On the other
hand, the government has promulgated statutes and ordinances through the FCC to
limit the number of radio and television stations that are able to broadcast on
the airways, along with their content and language usage.
Much has
changed since 1969, with the invention of the internet and affordable
computers/smart phones. A person can easily download a podcast, tweet on
Twitter or rip music onto their electronic device. The once written form of
expression such as newspapers, books, etc. can be accessed easily by just about
anyone from their smart device, making the printed word go viral. As for
broadcasting, yes the FCC still limits the number of stations on the airways
and how much power you can use to broadcast. But with the invention of the
internet a person can listen to the news, a podcast, and an opinion of a private
individual as easy as or easier than
turning on the radio or the television. The access theory does not seem to fit
comfortably into the 21st century and our social network.
