The First Amendment and the Media in the Court of Public Opinion

In light of recent frustrations with the press over its increasingly sensationalistic coverage of the news, no liberty is more vulnerable to the vagaries of the current political climate than is "freedom of the press." By considering public opinion data from two original surveys (1997 and 1999) on free press rights against the backdrop of modern First Amendment jurisprudence, this study offers new and original insights into the nature of popular support for these rights.