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Part II Anna Nicole Smith Free Speech and The Real Chilling Effect
Part II.
In writing these articles we hope to alleviate fears, encourage individuals to stop posting harassing threats of imminent lawsuits and educate ourselves and others as to exactly what constitutional protections are afforded to each of us. We also hope that these articles stimulate debate on the topic of internet postings, the right of free speech and the limits imposed by the current case law.
Freedom of speech is at the heart of America’s unique sense of liberty and democratic values. Justice Louis Brandeis wrote in Whitney v. California (1927), that
“freedom to think as you will and to speak as you think are means indispensable to the discovery and spread of political truth… order cannot be secured merely through fear of punishment for its infraction; that it is hazardous to discourage thought, hope and imagination; that fear breeds repression; that repression breeds hate; that hate menaces stable government; that the path of safety lies in the opportunity to discuss freely supposed grievances and proposed remedies; and that the fitting remedy for evil counsels is good ones… the best test of truth is the power of the thought to get itself accepted in the competition of the market.”










