The way wealthy, conservative business interests see it, free speech is about their power to “buy” both the “content” and the “delivery” of “free” speech – although they would never say it this way in public. Their argument stems from a legal definition giving corporations the same status called the "personhood" of corporations and the same rights as living human beings – the citizens of our country.
Using this argument, business interests have gained the agreement of the Supreme Court in the Citizens United case recognizing their corporate right to free speech and thus blocking almost any limitation on their ability to spend unlimited funds to control both the content and means of delivery in their use of political speech. They use the power of their money to buy our representatives through their campaign slush funds, to buy political ads for or against candidates and issues, and to directly control the media through ownership control. They are able to use this unlimited corporate ownership and/or funds and to write them off as business expenses.
(a) To purchase unlimited political advertising beyond the means of others for or against both issues and candidates according to their private business interests.
(b) To buy, centralize and control the media thereby gaining the ability to directly control programming, the TV personalities and news anchors, the content and how it is portrayed to such an extent that only a limited point of view is able to reach the public at large. The concentration of media ownership world-wide has surged in recent years giving control to a mere handful of the largest companies in the world. Recent efforts of high tech corporations to take control of satellite, cable, broadband communication links as well as the Internet itself.
(c) They have increasing inroads into both public and private schools from pre-school through graduate school in ways that determine the content of the curriculum making it directly a tool of their interests. They own the companies that create the curriculum or subsidize third parties to “ghost write” it for them. There have even been attempts to put their advertising into curriculum materials and in schools.
(d) Directly paying the salary of professors who agree with their self interests and will convey this bias in all that they teach. Controlling the content of the curricula and the professors allows corporations to indoctrinate whole generations of students to their self-interested views.
(e) As with the "Swift Boaters" and the "Birthers," “bought” speech [especially when disconnected from the responsibility of a particular party or campaign] is often nothing more than propaganda carefully crafted by media experts to deceive, create fear, bias or engender prejudice. Such “independent” inputs are almost always viciously negative and add little to the substance of public discourse regarding the issues.
For those who want even more legal detail and history, click here.
This is not the free speech conceived by the authors of our Bill of Rights and Constitution.
p.s. If
you want to read or share our complete introductory series and other blog posts
about this and other issues, see our Annotated Table of Contents below. Or if you have questions or comments,
email us.
Annotated Table of Contents
http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/sign-the-pledge-big-out?source=c.em&r_by=14960502
Insist candidates vote for a single act of Congress
stating: “There is no relationship between speech and money stated or implied
in the US Constitution and therefore no such relationship exists” as the basis
of further reforms to limit the abuses of Big Money interests.
Best summary of the proposed “Recover our Democracy Act;”
its Constitutional basis; removing purported legal objections, public financing
of elections, limits on campaign contributions, public funding of federal
elections, preprogrammed campaign website, redefining a bribe and much more
Cut and paste text to share by electronic media to spread
the word on our plan
Our appointment being ignored while lobbyists immediately enter
our Congressman’s office
Being on the outside: Explaining the meaning of our logo…the
corrupting influence of Big Money
Political contributions, Citizens United Supreme Court
Decision, “We don’t
have free speech. We can’t afford it,” our
solution is an act of Congress,
“Backdoor money in politics, quid pro quo, “anything of material value
offered or given to, or received and accepted by any candidate, incumbent or
governmental employee under any circumstance shall be defined as a bribe,” penalties defined for candidates and government
employees.
Our early commentaries: Free speech is fundamental to
democracy, different views, uses and limitations of free speech, public
financing of elections, fair and balanced media coverage
Original free speech: freedom to speak our mind, power
to “buy” both the “content” and the “delivery” of “free” speech, "personhood" of corporations,
Supreme Court and Citizens United,
ownership of the media, points of view, political advertising, educational content,
bought speech,…
Trickle down economics, tax reductions, income disparity,
deregulation, power by changing belief systems, abuses, distortions and lies, is
it regulation or just bad regulation?, affording governmental programs and high
taxes, millennia of struggle by the rich to retain control vs. democracy,
85% of Democrats, 81% of Independents, and 76% of Republicans opposed
Citizens United
Humans speaking their mind
without fear, means of extending the reach of speech [meida], bought speech,
literally “free” speech decoupled from money, power of the media, corporate personhood,
limitations of free speech, campaigns and political speech, alternative communications
for elections: public financing, freedom of the Internet….
Figures on campaign
contributions given by largest lobbying corporations [6+ years old = pre Supepr
PACs]
One of our earliest posts:We don't have free speech
that has meaningful access to our own representatives. Our logo, our slogan, our chants, young adults, spreading
the word on the Internet, Obama’s election, making videos,
Largely unedited, free associated ideas on framing the legislation
Free public website designed
and formatted to conduct campaigns for office and public issues , FEC provided
bank account, and credit cards , campaign accounting system and
regulations, partial design specifications, real time public review access…
…the most logical
public space to allow the free flow of information on issues of public interest
“understanding the
power of corporations as a means of amassing power and money, the founding
fathers originally rejected the existence of corporations,” corporations
are not mentioned in the Constitution and have no protected rights; therefore,
Congress may limit or abolish corporations as deemed necessary for the public
good. Growth of corporate power, personhood of corporations and personal rights
attributed to corporations , theory of 14th amendment [due process]
applies to corporations,
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