From the author of the esteemed epic poem, Paradise Lost, comes one history's most influential arguments against censorship. John Milton was known for his linguistic genius and political activity, often writing to support his views. During the height of the English Civil War, Milton published Areopagitica. Structured like an oral speech but delivered by pamphlets that Milton illegally printed and distributed, Areopagitica argues against censorship...

Walter Lippmann (1889-1974) was a prominent American essayist and editor. His many books include A Preface to Politics, Public Opinion, A Preface to Morals, and The Good Society. Ronald Steel is professor of international relations and history at the University of Southern California. He is author of Walter Lippman and the American Century. Sidney Blumenthal, former adviser to President Bill Clinton, is the author of How Bush Rules (Princeton) and...

Nowhere is the worldwide erosion of democracy, fueled by social media disinformation campaigns, more starkly evident than in the authoritarian regime of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte. Journalist Maria Ressa places the tools of the free press, and her freedom, on the line in defense of truth and democracy.

"A Founding Father of the United States, Thomas Jefferson once wrote that a free press is important to a functioning democracy. In other words, without critical and reliable press, a society and government cannot be held to account. This engaging title takes a probing look at what press freedom and censorship means, as well as where people find information, who owns and controls the press in a "free world," and what makes good, reliable journalism"--...

"Guardians of Liberty explores the essential and basic American ideal of freedom of the press. Allowing the American press to publish-even if what they're reporting is contentious-without previous censure or interference by the federal government was so important to the Founding Fathers that they placed a guarantee in the First Amendment to the Constitution. Citing numerous examples from America's past, from the American Revolution to the Vietnam...

Fox News host Mark Levin shows how those entrusted with news reporting today are destroying freedom of the press from within: "not government oppression or suppression," he writes, but self-censorship, group-think, bias by omission, and passing off opinion, propaganda, pseudo-events, and outright lies as news. Levin takes the reader on a journey through the early American patriot press, which proudly promoted the principles set forth in the Declaration...

A CBS reporter reveals how she has been electronically surveilled while digging deep into the Obama Administration and its scandals, and offers an incisive critique of her industry and the shrinking role of investigative journalism in today's media.

Journalists are being imprisoned and killed in record numbers. Online surveillance is annihilating privacy, and the Internet can be brought under government control at any time. Joel Simon, the executive director of the Committee to Protect Journalists, warns that we can no longer assume our global information ecosystem is stable, protected, and robust. Journalists -- and the crucial news they report -- are increasingly vulnerable to attack by authoritarian...

Find out how the media and government work together to share opinions and ideas and learn how the media affects you. You'll also discover some tips for telling the difference between facts, opinions, and fake news.

"Blending his experiences as a veteran reporter with trenchant analysis of the erosion of trust between the press and the government in the past 40 years, Free the Press gives readers a unique perspective on the challenges facing journalism, as well as the rise of hostility between these institutions"--