An American Pillar: Freedom of Speech
In recent news, on October 2nd, Jamal Khashoggi went into the Saudi consulate in Turkey to pick up some paperwork to allow him to marry his fiancé. The same security cameras that show him walking in, never show him walking out. In the weeks that have followed, allegations have been made by the Turkish government that the reason Khashoggi is not seen leaving the consulate is both shocking and disturbing (Kirkpatrick & Gall). As unfortunate as it may be, murders take place around the world everyday…but rarely do they grip the attention of the west, specifically the United States like this one has. There is little doubt that the reason for this is because one of the freedoms most treasured by Americans lies at the root of this horrific story.
Jamal Khashoggi was a citizen of Saudi Arabia but had been living in the U.S. for about a year because of fear of retaliation from his own government. He is a journalist and had been publishing articles and speaking on news outlets criticizing the ruling leaders of Saudi Arabia (Kirkpatrick & Gall). And with the breaking news on October 2nd and that which has continued to come out, it appears to be at least a possibility that his fears were valid, extremely valid. This event has one more time impacted the world political stage and has raised questions as to how this could still happen in the civilized world.
As westerners, and Americans in particular, hear about this case, they look inward and evaluate one of the main pillars of the free world, freedom of speech and freedom of the press. We think about its value, its purpose, and the potential consequences if it is not protected.
Once, Thomas Jefferson wrote in 1786 that “our liberty cannot be guarded but by the freedom of the press, nor that be limited without danger of losing it.” When reading this quote, it amazes me how much truth is in this statement from over two centuries ago. One way freedom of speech is exercised is through freedom of the press and it gives us protection from being persecuted by the government and keeps the government accountable to the people. I am well aware that there can be false reporting mixed in with truth, however the existence of falsehoods cannot serve as justification to silence or control all reporting. Jefferson made this declaration in spite of issues arising at that time with the press publishing libel and false stories (Bever). This topic is so controversial that if it wasn’t for laws and a government structured in such a way as to protect freedom of speech, a lot of reporters would be in prison. Every country is different and every country operates uniquely, nevertheless, protection of freedom of speech is vital for a society to grow and flourish.
This recent event has brought memories back to me of stories that I heard about what would happen to people that speak their mind and report the corruption under the control of the former Soviet Union. It is unfortunate when freedom of speech and freedom of the press is under attack. I have a firsthand understanding of what a nation is like without the protection of these freedoms and for them to be controlled by the government and biased in their reporting. Journalists either act as a mouthpiece for the government and its agenda, or they live in fear, even to the point of fearing for their own lives. In this type of environment, the only thoughts that get published or presented are those in the interest of the reigning leaders. What is accurate and is no longer of importance, and search for the truth is abandoned. The government’s propaganda seeps it to take the place of truth. This proves how important it is for journalists to be free from fear of punishment, in order for a truly free press to exist in a nation.
The restriction of the press in the Soviet Union also led to the restriction of freedom of speech in other places, including churches. My grandfather was imprisoned for years because he did not keep his beliefs to himself but spoke to others about them. They were meeting and having underground church, sharing with each other and exercising their freedom of speech and religion. But, they were punished for that because it was different than what the government believed. They were sent to hard labor camps where many of them died.
Another example of the horrible consequences of a government suppressing freedom of speech and freedom of the press comes from Nazi controlled Germany. There, the government leaders, particularly Adolf Hitler, used their powers to remove freedom of the press. When Hitler was chancellor of Germany he was able to successfully convince the German President to eliminate freedoms including that to publicly assemble and to speak freely (“How Did Hitler Happen?”). He was also able to narrow a diverse newspaper industry down to one official Nazi gazette is distribution throughout all of Germany (Sollmann, 538). This ultimately paved the way for Hitler to imprison and even murder those who spoke out against or challenged him (“How Did Hitler Happen?”). If the allegations against the Saudi government are true, the future of that nation may be gloomy, as history has shown.
Jefferson, with his experience with a controlling government, warned in the birth of the new nation that a free press is in fact the only security to keeping a government uncorrupted. He asserted that the voices rising up from the people are powerful enough to keep ruling leaders in check and corruption at bay (1823). The book Historical Guide to World Media Freedom: A Country-by-Country Analysis, labels a press, free from the government’s control, as a sort of “watchdog” for a government (Whitten-Woodring & Van Belle 4). The press has the unique ability to call out politicians and those in places of power for acting unethically. And, as long as the presence of this power is felt, politicians are much more likely to think twice before doing something that could hurt their approval ratings with the public. In the political climate of the day, most government leaders care about how the public perceives them. This may speak to leaders’ desire for authority in addition to power. As explained by Stephen Cobb in his chapter on politics in the book Christian Perspectives on Sociology, one has power when they are able to get others to do as they wish, but only have authority when those under their control actually view them as legitimate leaders (205). In an interesting study by Solis and Antenangeli of the University of Houston, evidence is presented showing that levels of corruption in any given government can be directly correlated to the efforts of the government to censor and suppress the media. This supports the notion that a free press is critical to the functioning of a healthy, honest government.
As Jefferson noted and as history so unfortunately displayed time and again, freedom of the press is of utmost importance to ensuring that those in places of political power do not overstep their bounds nor that they are able to practice corrupt politics. And, in order for freedom of the press to be a reality in a nation, journalists must be free from fear of retaliation from government powers for what they report to the people. In a world as connected as we live in today, journalists sometimes have the liberty to flee to a “safe” country, as Khashoggi did to the U.S., and still continue reporting against corruption. In the United States, freedom of the press is protected under the First Amendment to the Constitution that states, “Congress shall make no law…abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press…” However, as this story reminds us, even in fleeing to country with great freedom of expression, those reporters are still taking huge risks.
If a government ever decides to limit the freedom of the press while they exercise their right to freedom of speech and go after journalists instead of dealing with the corruption itself, it could be a danger to democracy. It is vital for the press to be able to report and expose illegal, unethical, or harmful things that the government is doing, as they see fit. Ultimately, the government should be accountable to the people, not the other way around. The free press is one, if not the biggest, vehicles for this accountability. Quoting Justice Black in his strong opinion upholding the First Amendment in regards to journalists’ right to report particular information, “The press was [meant] to serve the governed, not the governors.” Freedom of speech and freedom of the press in this country is like the air for our lungs; the moment you limit the air flow to our lungs is the moment when you begin to lose consciousness.
As Christians, we are acutely aware that one of the benefits that freedom of speech offers is protection for groups of faith to be able to share their faith openly and stand for what they believe. However, the Bible reminds us that even with this comes a responsibility that each one of us are to carry, a responsibility to speak words that build up and do not destroy, that encourage and bring hope and not destruction. Even though we have the right to speak anything, we are to use wisdom and cherish this freedom that others may not have.
Works Cited
Bever, Lindsey. “Analysis | Memo to Donald Trump: Thomas Jefferson Invented Hating the Media.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 18 Feb. 2017, www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/02/17/trumps-war-with-the-media-isnt-new-thomas-jefferson-railed-about-newspaper-lies-too.
Cobb, Stephen G., “Politics.” Christian Perspectives on Sociology, Edited by Stephen A. Grunlan & Milton Reimer, Wipf and Stock Publishers, 2001, pg 204–225.
“How Did Hitler Happen?” n.d. The National WWII Museum: New Orleans. 30 Sept. 2018
Jefferson, Thomas. Thomas Jefferson to John Jay, January 25, 1786. Letter. https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/01-09-02-0190
Jefferson, Thomas. Thomas Jefferson to Lafayette, 1823. Letter. https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/01-09-02-0190
Kirkpatrick, David D., and Carlotta Gall. “Audio Offers Gruesome Details of Jamal Khashoggi Killing, Turkish Official Says.” The New York Times. 17 Oct. 2018. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/17/world/europe/turkey-saudi-khashoggi-dismember.html
New York Times Co. v. United States. 403 U.S. Supreme Court. 1971. Rpt. In Legal Information Institute. Cornell Law School. https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/403/713#writing-USSC_CR_0403_0713_ZC
Solis, Jonathan A., and Leonardo Antenangeli. “Corruption Is Bad News for a Free Press: Reassessing the Relationship Between Media Freedom and Corruption.” Social Science Quarterly, no. 3, 2017, p. 1112. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1111/ssqu.12438.
Sollmann, William F. “The German Press After V-Day.” Public Opinion Quarterly, vol. 8, no. 4, Winter44/45 1944, p. 537. EBSCOhost.
