For freedom of speech, these are troubling times | Jonathan Dimbleby

This most fundamental of principles is under attack – from over-zealous law making, online witch hunts, and a profit-driven media offensive on the BBCIn our troubled and insecure environment, Britain has accumulated laws which curtail freedom of expression – in the name of national security and territorial integrity; and to prevent public disorder and combat crime. Laws which also compromise freedom of expression to restrict what we now call “hate speech”.Take the Public Order Act, which makes it a criminal offence to use threatening or abusive language with the intention of causing “alarm or distress” to an individual or anybody else who hears it. It is a criminal offence to use language, or publish written material, intended to incite “racial hatred”. It is a criminal offence to incite “religious hatred” or “hatred” against individuals on the grounds of sexual orientation.There is a growing number of people who believe you should be able to say what you like, so long as they agree with you Related: The arts, the law and freedom of speech Related: Why free speech is integral to the intellectual life of our universities | Catherine Bennett Too often university authorities are supine in the face student intimidationNews Corp and its ilk have a vested financial interest in reducing the BBC’s scope and influence Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2015-09-21 00:00:00 UTC ]

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