Comments Posted By Bob Doyle
Displaying 1 To 1 Of 1 Comments
MORE BAD NEWS ON FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHTS
Well, I'll have to check into whether this is the "actual" or "correct" take on this ruling, but if it is, then this is an incredible assault on freedom of speech and the press. The press has a responsibility to report the "truth." In that regard, if some (hypothetical) fat, inebriated, delirious senator guilty of vehicular manslaughter were to state that, say, a political opponent on the illegal immigration issue is a racist Nazi, one might think the press not only has a right, but also, an ethical obligation to report what the senator said. In other words, what the senator said and that he said it IS the "news" that the press has a right and an obligation to report. Whether or not what the senator said is or is not true has no bearing on the truth of whether or not the senator said it. The press must have the right to reveal truthfully what the senator said with no further obligation to ascertain whether what was said is true. Certainly, the press is also free to inquire into whether the statement is true or not. However, if they cannot report what was actually said simply because what was said is untrue, then the press will fail to perform one of its most important functions: that is, revealing to all the world what moonbats some people are!
Comment Posted By Bob Doyle On 4.04.2005 @ 15:20
