Debate: Censorship and Free of Speech

Freedom and Police Violence: Newest Case

The newest trend among conservative censors is the prejudice that ordinary people or journalists should not film police officers on duty, especially if they articulate such reluctance in a speech. American jurisprudence knows a lot of cases in this regard, and in the summer of 2022, a precedent arose for initiating the Arizona Broadcaster Association et al. v. Brnovich et al. case. On August 23, the Arizona Broadcasters Association filed its claim, and its consideration began in early September. Brnovich acts not as a private person but as a prosecutor, representing a robust police structure.

The fact is that the Arizona Broadcaster Association faced a complaint from the police that they can only be filmed at a distance of eight meters, and at the voiced request, journalists are required to turn off the camera (Arizona Broadcasters Association et al. v. Brnovich et al., (D. Ariz. 2022)). Such a law contradicts the principle of freedom of speech and limits the media and journalists in their coverage of such sensitive topics as police brutality and lawlessness. Another high-profile case was Glick v. Cunniffe, which ended in favor of Glick, a citizen who filmed the arrest on camera (Glik v. Cunniffe, 655 F.3d 78, (1st Cir. 2011)). Such a decision manifests freedom of speech and the rights of people to receive support and protection in the media.

Connection with Media

In the case of Arizona Broadcaster Association v. Brnovich, police tried to advance HB 2319 and exercise their rights. However, this bill violates the rights of journalists and ordinary citizens to seek protection in the media. The police, in their execution, are representatives of the state and must base their actions on the principles of transparency. The famous activist Al Sharpton speaks on this subject: “We are not anti-police… we are anti-police brutality” (McLeod 2022). Thus, police misuse of HB 2319 leaves journalists and citizens exposed to police brutality and violates the fundamental principles of law enforcement transparency (Alang et al. 2017). It is connected not only with the media but also with ethical categories, such as justice (Westmarland and Rowe 2018). Left alone with the police and without the right to declare their problem to other people through the media or social networks, people feel particularly acute injustice towards themselves.

References

Alang, Sirry, Donna McAlpine, Ellen McCreedy, and Rachel Hardeman. “Police brutality and black health: Setting the agenda for public health scholars.” American journal of public health 107, no. 5 (2017): 662-665.

Arizona Broadcasters Association et al. v. Brnovich et al., 2:22-cv-01431 (D. Ariz. 2022)

Glik v. Cunniffe, 655 F.3d 78 (1st Cir. 2011)

McLeod, Nia Simone. “Police Brutality Quotes About Race, Injustice, and More.” Web.

Westmarland, Louise, and Michael Rowe. “Police ethics and integrity: can a new code overturn the blue code?” Policing and society 28, no. 7 (2018): 854-870.