A Variable Number of Cheers For Viewpoint-Based Regulations of Speech

50 Pages Posted: 25 Aug 2020

See all articles by R. George Wright

R. George Wright

Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law

Date Written: April 8, 2020

Abstract

It is widely taken for granted that viewpoint-based restrictions of speech are, as a class, especially disfavored, meriting either absolute prohibition or strict scrutiny. As it turns out, however, this common assumption is both descriptively incorrect and normatively unjustifiable.

A typology of the various basic forms of viewpoint-based restriction of speech supports this initially surprising claim. This typology can be constructed out of the obvious uncertainties, ambiguities, equivocations, disparities, and gaps found in the viewpoint-restriction cases. Ultimately, depending upon type and circumstance, and apart from any weight of any relevant government interest, a viewpoint-based speech restriction of speech may deserve anywhere between zero and three cheers.

Keywords: speech, viewpoint-based regulations, strict scrutiny, prohibitons, bans

JEL Classification: K10, K19

Suggested Citation

Wright, R. George, A Variable Number of Cheers For Viewpoint-Based Regulations of Speech (April 8, 2020). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3571703 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3571703

R. George Wright (Contact Author)

Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law ( email )

530 West New York Street
Indianapolis, IN 46202
United States

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