Pinker Steven. The Seven Words You Can’t Say on Television

Penguin, 2007. — 38 pages. — ISBN: 978-0-14-188983-2.Just as clearly, freedom of speech cannot be guaranteed in every circumstance. The U.S. Supreme Court recognizes five kinds of unprotected speech, and four of the exclusions are compatible with the rationale for enshrining free speech as a fundamental liberty. Fraud and libel are not protected, because they subvert the essence of speech that makes it worthy of protection, namely, to seek and share the truth. Also unprotected are advocacy of imminent lawless behavior and “fighting words,” beca use they are intended to trigger behavior reflexively (as when someone shouts “Fire!” in a crowded theater) rather than to exchange ideas.Yet the fifth category of unprotected speech — obscenity — seems to defy justification. Though some prurient words and images are protected, others cross a vague and contested boundary into the category of “obscenity,” and the government is free to outlaw them. And in broadcast media, the state is granted even broader powers, and may ban sexual and scatological language that it classifies as mere “indecency.” But why would a democracy sanction the use of government force to deter the uttering of words for two activities — sex and excretion — that harm no one and are inescapable parts of the human condition?This book is about the fate of the fifth category of unprotected speech on television.