You Can't Always Say What You Want: The Paradox of Free Speech

by Dennis Baron

Overview

The freedom to think what you want and to say what you think has always generated a pushback of regulation and censorship. This raises the thorny question: to what extent does free speech actually endanger speech protection? This book examines today's calls for speech legislation and places it into historical perspective, using fascinating examples from the past 200 years, to explain the historical context of laws regulating speech. Over time, the freedom to speak has grown, the ways in which we communicate have evolved due to technology, and our ideas about speech protection have been challenged as a result. Now more than ever, we are living in a free speech paradox: powerful speakers weaponize their rights in order to silence those less-powerful speakers who oppose them. By understanding how this situation has developed, we can stand up to these threats to the freedom of speech.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781009198905
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	02/28/2023
Pages:	240
Product dimensions:	6.26(w) x 9.25(h) x 0.79(d)

About the Author

Dennis Baron is Emeritus Professor of English at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He is a frequent commentator on language issues in the national media and written a number of popular books, including What's Your Pronoun? (2020).

Table of Contents

1. Free speech, but...; 2. Guns and grammar; 3. Clear and present danger; 4. Strong language; 5. Threat level: orange; 6. America's war on language; 7. Repeat after me; 8. Will free speech survive?

Editorial Reviews

'The landscape of free speech is in constant flux, and Baron provides important context to the current debates.' Kirkus Reviews

‘… ambitious and timely …' James Rhoades, Library Journal

From the Publisher

12/16/2022

In this ambitious and timely work, Baron (emeritus, English, Univ. of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; What's Your Pronoun?) attempts to tackle the broad and ever-evolving topic of free speech, while focusing on the legal control of language. The work is not about the First Amendment; it's more of an examination of how the U. S. government and businesses, over many years, advocate for speech suppression. The author alludes repeatedly that Republicans, conservatives, and Donald Trump are the main culprits of such silencing, but he also says that laws, restrictions, and monitoring originates from politicians and businesses on all sides of the spectrum. Most notably, the author covers a great deal of ground by moving interestingly from speech to language to privacy. Yet, the broad net somewhat takes away from the work's value. The book makes worthy and extensive use of primary and legal source material and reprints of documents and images. VERDICT Although the author could have used a more even-handed approach, this book covers enough on the suppression of language to make it a welcome addition at both public and academic libraries.—James Rhoades

Library Journal

2022-10-18
An expert on language reviews the complex issues around free speech and what they mean for democratic practice.

Free speech is one of the key principles of American democracy, but Baron, an emeritus professor of English and author specializing in this field, describes it as more like “free speech, but.” Despite the First Amendment prohibition on government regulation of speech, there have always been exceptions and rules. It is a vital area for study and debate, but a problem with the book is that Baron, while presenting himself as a dispassionate expert, shows his liberal leanings too often. When he discusses extremists who would limit free speech, he focuses only on conservative activists, ignoring the left-wing variety. Though Donald Trump’s presidency was unquestionably chaotic and most likely corrupt, the author’s tone regarding the former president feels like he’s trying to score points with liberal readers. For example, in the section on the prohibition of threats to the president, he skips over the many threats to assassinate Trump, such as the public statement by Madonna that she wanted to blow up the White House, and instead focuses on Trump’s (admittedly) dubious pronouncements. He also includes a long section on gun ownership and the Second Amendment, although the connection with free speech is not clear. Despite these issues, Baron provides a useful and interesting examination of the court cases related to free speech and includes a discussion on the changing parameters relating to obscenity, sedition, artistic expression, and threats. Passing a law is one thing, and interpreting it for practical application is quite another. “Despite the large body of legal rulings,” writes the author, “the border between protected and unprotected speech is seldom clear or stable, which may leave speakers unsure about what they can say and when. Laws may protect speech, but they always leave some speech unprotected.”

The landscape of free speech is in constant flux, and Baron provides important context to the current debates.

Kirkus Reviews