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A Purpose-And-Effect Test To Limit The Expansion Of The Government Speech Doctrine, Will Soper
A Purpose-And-Effect Test To Limit The Expansion Of The Government Speech Doctrine, Will Soper
University of Colorado Law Review
The First Amendment of the Constitution prohibits the government from passing any law that limits the freedom of private speech. However, in order to effectively govern, the state must communicate its policies and messages in ways that may not leave room for competing views. Since the early 1990s, the Supreme Court has articulated and developed the doctrine of government speech: when the government speaks, it is exempt from the First Amendment. The doctrine's use and expansion has its detractors. Many are worried that government speech should only be protected when it would be clear to a reasonable listener that the …