Eight Values of Free Expression (BLOG POST #3)

Stable Change, the idea that a society in which angry and alienated individuals are allowed to speak their minds will be more stable and less violent, is one of the eight values of free expression that resonates with me deeply. As a nation, it should be our goal to keep unprovoked violence to a minimum. For example, when The Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June of 2022, marches and protests erupted all over the nation. However, there were no riots or violence involved. I firmly believe we were able to avoid violence in this scenario because we allowed our citizens to voice their frustrations publicly. However, this idea of Stable Change doesn't always perform as expected. Following the October 7th attacks on Israel in 2023 universities all across the country experienced student-led protests. Early on these protests were just protests but as time went on, a lot of them turned into antisemitic battlegrounds. According to the Anti-Defamation League's website, the 2023-2024 ADL report found that anti-Israel activism on U.S. campuses reached 2,087 incidents which included assault, vandalism, and harassment. This was a 477% increase in those categories from the same period in 2022-2023. Unfortunately, we could not eliminate violence by letting individuals speak their minds in this scenario as we did when the Roe v. Wade protests began. 

I feel as though Individual Self-Fulfillment is the most personal value of free expression to me. As someone who has views that vary greatly from almost every other person in my family, having the freedom to voice my differing opinions was integral in forming the person I am today; politically and personally. Individual Self-Fulfillment is defined as the following: free speech enables individuals to express themselves and thereby create their own identity- and, in the process perhaps, find kindred spirits. Freedom of speech thus becomes an aspect of human dignity, human agency, and autonomy. Throughout my journey from adolescence to adulthood, I have been able to connect with those who have similar opinions to mine and come to somewhat of a middle ground with my family on certain topics like gun control and the decriminalization of marijuana. Without freedom of speech, I could have spent my whole life agreeing with whatever my family believed to be right or wrong and never hearing a differing opinion. 

We have the ability, in America, to disagree with the majority opinion or any opinion. The purpose of this is to prevent a mob rule from forming and taking over our democracy. When there is a Republican president in the Oval Office Democrats can still freely speak about their issues with the President and vice versa. This value is known as Protection of Dissent and I see it in action every day in the America we now live in. When Donald Trump was President from 2017 to 2021 it felt like every social media platform had turned into a political forum. There was no social media site you could visit that didn't have hundreds and hundreds of posts disagreeing with the actions and values of the President, all of which were protected under the First Amendment as long as they didn't incite violence or defame him. 

EOTO: Motion Pictures

 Movies have become a staple in our lives. We go to the theaters, we rent them, we stream them, we catch them on live TV, etc. However, movies haven't even been around for that long. A Trip to the Moon (1902) is widely recognized as the first motion picture but, in 1888 Louis Le Prince filmed a 3-second clip known as the Roundhay Garden Scene

Supreme Court Reflection (BLOG POST #2)

 After watching the videos on The Supreme Court, the number of cases they received stood out to me most. I had no idea so many cases petitioned The Supreme Court. According to the video which was uploaded 11 years ago, the court receives 100 new cases a week and about 7,000 per year. Given how much time has passed they could be receiving even more by now. However, in my mind, I always assumed they had a couple hundred cases sent to them a year and they heard about half of them. 

The most important takeaway from this material for me was that oral arguments really can change the opinions and findings of the Justices. The Justices will all have different viewpoints based on the briefings and will then use the oral arguments presented during the case to make their final decisions in deliberations. Justice Kennedy even says in the video that oral arguments have to make a difference because "abstract principles have to be applied in real-life situations". So, in that 30 minutes, the attorneys have to present their case and respond to the Justice's questioning someone's whole opinion could change. 

The most surprising thing I learned was how detailed the opinions of the court are and how long the process of publishing them is. The first draft often takes roughly 4 weeks to write and that is with the help of clerks and secretaries. Then after the first draft is finished, it is sent to all eight of the other justices and gets revised up to a dozen more times "in the effort to persuade the others to join the opinion". I had no idea justices attempted to persuade their colleagues or that these opinions took so long to successfully craft. 

After watching the videos I have a newfound deeper respect for The Supreme Court. This isn't to say I had no respect for them before, learning the ins and outs of the court has just made my opinion of them shift. To interpret a document from over 200 years ago and successfully tie it to modern problems can be tricky in and of itself. However, tying that document to modern problems and doing so while debating with eight other individuals trying to do the same thing increases the level of difficulty substantially. 

My Top Five Sources

     My top five news sources are News Nation, CNN, MSNBC, The New York Post, and The Associated Press. Out of the five, my favorite is definitely News Nation. I feel as though News Nation gives a mainly unbiased approach to their reporting and reports on pertinent information promptly. I've found the reporting to be accurate as well as important. If there is anything I would critique about News Nation it would be simply the fact that I feel they need better guests and more of them. I prefer to hear from experts on a topic when it is being reported on and I feel as though other networks often do a better job at bringing guests in when they serve a substantial purpose. 

    I also get my news from CNN, the Cable News Network. CNN although not a popular news source for some, has been one of my favorite media outlets for years. I like the categories the website and app are divided into so you can scroll through specific types of news when you're interested or worried about a particular topic. I find that their live coverage always seems to be well thought out despite how shocking of a situation the reporter might be in. Finally, my favorite thing about CNN is the fact that anyone can log onto their website right now and watch live news coverage by going to the "Live TV" button. So, no matter where you are you always have access to live news updates from them. 

My third news source is MSNBC, which I'm sure a lot of us use. MSNBC is not a news source I typically use for live updates or just casual watching of the news. For me, MSNBC is for notifications that take me to an article where I can brush up on the topic. I prefer to use CNN and News Nation for live coverage of anything because I find their programs to be more engaging. However, MSNBC does always have good sources and well-written articles on situations. Hence why I still use the articles just not their television coverage. 

The New York Post, my fourth news source, is one I don't often check but do use from time to time. As most people have found, there tends to be a tinge of bias in the reporting of The New York Post. However, I find it important to look at things from a different perspective than my own on occasion. In those instances, I will visit The Post and read about a topic I've already formed an opinion on after hearing about it from CNN or News Nation to see how others are viewing that topic. Most of the time this provides me with a clear look at where the middle ground between the two sides is, therefore giving me a deeper understanding of the situation as a whole. 

The Associated Press is my fifth and final news source. I find that The Associated Press often releases information before other outlets and does its due diligence in finding out all of the information available. I also like that AP is an entirely not-for-profit organization. Meaning, that none of their stories are published just for views and clicks, they are posted simply to inform the nation of the current events that could impact citizens. In contrast, other news agencies have to create juicy headlines and fluffed stories in order to make money off of their reporting.