.
“Madison and the other Framers of the First Amendment, able men that they were, wrote in language they earnestly
believed could never be misunderstood: ‘Congress shall make no law . . .
abridging the freedom . . . of the press. . . .’
“Both the history and language of the First Amendment support the view that the press must be left free to publish news, whatever the source, without censorship, injunctions, or prior restraints. In the First Amendment, the Founding Fathers gave the free press the protection it must have to fulfill its essential role in our democracy. The press was to serve the governed, not the governors. . . .”
“In my view, far from deserving condemnation for their courageous reporting, the New York Times, the Washington Post, and other newspapers should be commended for serving the purpose that the Founding Fathers saw so clearly. In revealing the workings of government that led to the Vietnam war, the newspapers nobly did precisely that which the Founders hoped and trusted they would do.”
“Both the history and language of the First Amendment support the view that the press must be left free to publish news, whatever the source, without censorship, injunctions, or prior restraints. In the First Amendment, the Founding Fathers gave the free press the protection it must have to fulfill its essential role in our democracy. The press was to serve the governed, not the governors. . . .”
“In my view, far from deserving condemnation for their courageous reporting, the New York Times, the Washington Post, and other newspapers should be commended for serving the purpose that the Founding Fathers saw so clearly. In revealing the workings of government that led to the Vietnam war, the newspapers nobly did precisely that which the Founders hoped and trusted they would do.”
—Justice Hugo Black, concurring in the Supreme Court’s 6-3 Pentagon Papers decision, affirming the right of The New York Times and The Washington Post to publish without government prior restraint, 1971.
• Editorial Comment: But you’ve got to wonder what would the current Supremes do?
• Related: We just (finally) saw “The Post,” which inspired today's quote from Hugo Black. If you haven’t seen the movie yet, see it. Here’s the NYTimes’ review, “In ‘The Post,’ Democracy Survives the Darkness.”
PeezPix by Ted Pease
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Ted Pease, Professor of Interesting Stuff, Trinidad, California. (Be)Friend The WORD
“I
don’t think writers are sacred, but words are. They deserve respect. If
you get the right ones, in the right order, you can nudge the world a
little.” —Tom Stoppard
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