First Amendment Commons^™

The First Amendment In An Age Of Paratroopers, David Skover, Ronald Collins

Faculty Articles

As the lead piece in a Colloquy entitled The First Amendment and the Paratroopers' Paradox, this article argues that today's free speech theory is largely grounded in 18th Century fears of government's tyrannical censorship. This theory is ill-equipped to deal with a distinct tyranny in 21st Century America, a tyranny playing upon the public's insatiable appetite for amusement. Those who venture to develop free speech principles to suit a new cultural environment are the First Amendment paratroopers of our time, the ones who realize that we cannot retain our old constitutional prerogatives in a transformed world. The Paratroopers' Paradox: To …

Cable Traffic And The First Amendment Must-Carry Under A Diversity Approach And Antitrust As Possible Alternative, Bruno Vandermeulen

LLM Theses and Essays

Recent technological progress in the field of telecommunications has greatly changed the competitive structure between broadcasters, cable operators, and telephone companies. The legal and economic environment for these media participants has shifted, and new problems have arisen. One major problem is the enhanced threat of concentration of media corporations, as corporate bigness becomes desirable and the number of diversified owners of media outlets continues to decrease. This paper analyzes broadcasting regulations and subsequent case law to show the concern by the legislature and regulatory agencies to preserve diversity in opinion and media-ownership through emphasis on “localism” and a “marketplace of …

The Right To Speak, The Right To Hear, And The Right Not To Hear: The Technological Resolution To The Cable/Pornography Debate, Michael I. Meyerson

All Faculty Scholarship

The advent of cable television presented a new opportunity to consider the competing interests on each side of the free speech/pornography debate. This Article attempts to construct an analysis that will be consistent with Supreme Court teaching on how government, under the first amendment, may constitutionally regulate legal obscenity, particularly in the name of protecting those who wish to avoid exposure to such material.

The Article shows how, unlike earlier battles over technology and pornography, cable television presented the novel opportunity to have a technological rather than a censorial solution to this difficult problem.

Cable Television Rights Of Way: Technology Expands The Concept Of Public Forum, Lawrence E. Spong

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

This Note argues that the public forum analysis is the proper standard for evaluating a cable television company's claim of access to public rights of way. Part I discusses the constitutional basis for this standard. Part II examines the ideological justifications for the public forum doctrine and argues that public rights of way are public forums for cable television purposes. In addition, it explains the application of the public forum doctrine to cable access questions and the doctrine's advantages over other standards.

Video Games And The First Amendment: Are Restrictive Regulations Constitutional?, 5 Computer L.J. 493 (1985), Lisa E. Kranitz

UIC John Marshall Journal of Information Technology & Privacy Law

No abstract provided.

Electrifying The First Amendment, Mark S. Nadel

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Teaching The Theories Of Evolution And Scientific Creationism In The Public Schools: The First Amendment Religion Clauses And Permissible Relief, J. Greg Whitehair

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

This Note explores the propriety of teaching the theory of evolution and the scientific creation model in public elementary and secondary schools. Part I discusses the powers of the state and its political subdivisions to set public school policy and curriculum content and the extent to which those powers are circumscribed by the religion clauses of the first amendment. Part I concludes that the religion clauses permit the teaching of evolutionary theory in public schools. Part II examines the variety of judicial and legislative relief potentially available to creationists where the teaching of evolution theory interferes with their religious beliefs …

Predicting Court Cases Quantitatively, Stuart Nagel

Michigan Law Review

This article illustrates and systematically compares three methods for quantitatively predicting case outcomes. The three methods are correlation, regression, and discriminant analysis, all of which involve standard social science research techniques. Two prior articles have generated requests for a study dealing with the problems involved in handling a larger number of cases and predictive variables. The present article is also designed to provide such a study. It does not presuppose that the reader has read the earlier articles, although such a reading might help to clarify further some of the points made here. The cases used to illustrate the methods …

Constitutional Law - Freedom Of Religion - Fluoridation Of City Water, John M. Webb S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

In its proprietary capacity the City of Bend maintains and operates a water system with the exclusive right to supply water to its inhabitants. In February 1952 the mayor and city commissioners adopted an ordinance providing for the introduction of fluorine into the water supply to reduce dental caries in the teeth of young children. The plaintiff as a resident and taxpayer brought suit to enjoin such action. A demurrer to his complaint was sustained. On appeal, held, affirmed. A city, in the exercise of its police power, may enact reasonable regulations for the protection of the public health, …