Freedom of Speech

Choose a particular context in which speech acts are made or disseminated. This context might be a physical location (e.g. a country or city), an institution (e.g. the House of Lords, a college campus, a street corner in Abidjan known for sidewalk orations, the Daily Show) or a medium (e.g. Facebook, Der Stuermer newspaper, SMS, the web). The context may be either present-day or historical. Then select at least two examples of speech that have been disseminated in that context, or that might be disseminated in it. Choose one speech act that is worthy of protection, in your view (e.g. a joke) and another that should not be protected (e.g. a threat). In a 10-12 page paper, do the following: a. Describe the context you have chosen, with special regard to the sorts of speech that are/ were disseminated in this context. Explain who decides what speech is permitted, and describe formal or informal restrictions on speech in this context. b. Explain why the speech acts you chose are worthy of protection, or not worthy, in your view. Is it always possible to distinguish between them? How? c. Recommend measures to protect the first type of speech and at the same time – if you believe this is necessary – measures to ban, inhibit, limit, or deter the second type of speech. For this assignment, you will be graded on the quality of your writing (it should be clear, concise, and free of errors), the quality of your research (be as detailed and specific as you can. Use references, including at least three readings from the course), and the quality of your ideas (are your recommendations feasible, innovative, effective?).