New York Times Co V Sullivan Forty Years Later

The need to protect free speech on matters of governing importance--more than any other element of government--is the defining factor of a free society. Nowhere in the law is that prospect more clearly explained than in the opinion in Times v. Sullivan. This special issue provides an example of the breadth and scope of Times v. Sullivan and the ways in which the case continues to impact the jurisprudence of free expression. It is introduced by two essays designed to provide an overview of the case, providing insights into the origins of the dispute the Court was called upon to settle. The next four articles are testimony to breadth the opinion in this case, particularly dealing with aspects not often considered. Combined, they all demonstrate the lasting significance of what may be the most important free expression case the Court has delivered.

The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 created a new political landscape and a new era of warfare. Language, Symbols, and the Media, now in paperback, offers insights into the impact and influence of 9/11 upon our cultural, social, and political life. The book opens with an introductory chapter on communications, media language, and visual symbolism in the immediate wake of the attacks. The second chapter considers the challenge to religious pluralism, analyzing the grounds for the immediate backlash against Islam. Chapter 3 reviews several crucial historical and contemporary Supreme Court rulings relevant to the limitations of free speech in times of war and national crises. The consideration of First Amendment rights is continued in chapter 4, which places the Patriot Act in historical context by comparing the legislation and its interpretation of it to other legislation passed in response to past American crises. The immediate aftermath of the attacks witnessed many calls for an end to "the age of irony" and a return to "traditional values." Chapter 5 considers some contrarian responses and analyzes the impact of irony as a rhetorical device in American culture. The unifying role of sport in the post-9/11 healing process in America is examined in chapter 6. Chapter 7 examines the reactions and responses of young adults to the events of 9/11 one year later. Chapter 8 demonstrates how politicians received a public "makeover" of their careers. Chapter 9 explores the impact of 9/11 on the rhetoric of advertising, while chapter 10 focuses more closely on how it affected the tourism industry. A concluding chapter examines several instances of media self-censorship and its implications for the policymaking process during times of crisis. This volume will be of interest to cultural studies specialists, sociologists, journalists, political scientists, historians, as well as general readers.

Examines the 1964 Supreme Court First Amendment case between the New York Times and Montgomery, Alabama commissioner L.B. Sullivan over an advertisement the Times ran protesting mistreatment of African-American students and the arrest of Martin Luther Kin

Illuminating a classic case from the turbulent civil rights era of the 1960s, two of America's foremost legal historians-Kermit Hall and Melvin Urofsky-provide a compact and highly readable updating of one of the most memorable decisions in the Supreme Court's canon. When the New York Times published an advertisement that accused Alabama officials of willfully abusing civil rights activists, Montgomery police commissioner Lester Sullivan filed suit for defamation. Alabama courts, citing factual errors in the ad, ordered the Times to pay half a million dollars in damages. The Times appealed to the Supreme Court, which had previously deferred to the states on libel issues. The justices, recognizing that Alabama's application of libel law threatened both the nation's free press and equal rights for African Americans, unanimously sided with the Times. As memorably recounted twenty years ago in Anthony Lewis's Make No Law, the 1964 decision profoundly altered defamation law, which the Court declared must not hinder debate on public issues even if it includes "vehement, caustic, and sometimes unpleasantly sharp attacks on government and public officials." The decision also introduced a new First Amendment test: a public official cannot recover damages for libel unless he proves that the statement was made with the knowledge that it was false or with reckless disregard of whether it was false. Hall and Urofsky, however, place a new emphasis on this iconic case. Whereas Lewis's book championed freedom of the press, the authors here provide a stronger focus on civil rights and southern legal culture. They convey to readers the urgency of the civil rights movement and the vitriolic anger it inspired in the Deep South. Their insights place this landmark case within a new and enlightening frame.

"In its landmark 1964 decision in New York Times v. Sullivan, the Supreme Court held that a public official must prove "actual malice" or reckless disregard of the truth in order to win a libel lawsuit. The case, which grew out of segregationists' attempts to quash reporting on the civil rights movement, revolutionized media reporting and public discourse in America. Drawing on previously unexplored sources, including the papers of the New York Times Company and leaders of the civil rights movement, this book tells the fascinating story of the legal issues and behind-the-scenes maneuvers that led to one of the most important First Amendment rulings in history-a ruling that is more critical and controversial than ever"--