I think the notion that "freedom of the press" refers to the - trade of journalism is incorrect. Posted: Nov 26th, 2019 - 1:44 pm In Reply to: He also wrote on the responsibilities that come along - with this right. Thomas Jefferson
Usage of the phrase "the press" to refer to newspapermen didn't originate until the early 1900s.
The origins of the first amendment reference to "freedom of the press" literally refers to the machine, the printing press.
All the rights of individuals in the first amendment should be taken together as different sides of the same concept:
"abridging the freedom of speech" quite literally meant speech as far as crowds of people could hear you. It's the proverbial person standing on a soapbox in the town square shouting his opinions to others.
"the right of the people to peaceably assemble" means literally to stand together and hear a speaker speak. During colonial British rule, a group of people seen together in public would be suspected as being conspirators against the Crown. Free speech does no good if the People aren't allowed to congregate to hear you.
"freedom of the press" meant the right of anyone to publish. Spoken word only traveled as far as one could hear it. Printing one's thoughts and distributing them across the colonies extended the reach of thought, and therefore, its influence.
"the right to petition the government for a redress of grievances" meant using the freedoms of speech, press, and assembly to call out when the federal government exceeded its Constitutional authority.
"Journalism," or "the press" as they like to refer to themselves, is an amalgam of these rights. It's an industry that uses free speech and free press to report on the activities of government through the way government interacts with and impacts the people, as well as reporting on the assemblies of people with each other.
But ultimately, freedom of the press is the peoples' right to publish, not the Washington Post's right to special protections. If this judge is saying that the Washington Post has a right to publish innuendo and smear, then we ALL do.
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