Analyzing the Interplay of Freedom of Speech and Hate Speech: Essay

This essay delves into the intricate relationship between freedom of speech and hate speech, exploring the challenges of balancing individual rights with the need to regulate harmful expression. The introduction highlights the inherent tension between liberty and limitation, setting the stage for an examination of how speech can both empower and cause harm. The essay discusses the direction of speech, contrasting the inclusive nature of free speech with the potentially divisive nature of hate speech. It emphasizes the importance of finding a middle ground through the application of laws. The role of media is analyzed, acknowledging its crucial function in promoting free speech while also recognizing its potential to propagate hate speech. The conclusion advocates for a balanced approach that protects rights while addressing the harms of hate speech. The essay uses cited references to support its arguments, providing a comprehensive overview of the topic.

FREEDOM 1
Freedom of Speech and Hate Speech.
Student’s Name
Course Code
Professor’s Name
Name of the University
City/ State
Date.

FREEDOM 2
Introduction.
Liberty and limitation are concepts often placed on opposite ends with a seemingly hard
to find middle ground. Liberty is always viewed as opposed to limitation and vice versa.
Freedom of speech and hate speech present a similar situation. While one seeks to protect an
individual’s right to express oneself, the other suppresses that right by providing laws to regulate
the content of speech. The key issue underlying regulations on both free speech and hate speech
is the ability of speech to cause harm (Strossen, 2018).
Direction of speech.
Free speech allows for expression of both people; in power and those being governed,
the rich and the poor, the young and elderly. In essence, free speech encourages equality in the
freedom of expression while hate speech is mainly from a point of superiority (Doyle, 2018).
With changing times, a position is sought to promote democracy as well as protect individual
rights. This results into the application of laws that govern both freedom of speech and hate
speech to achieve a balance between the two (Herz and Molnár, 2012).
Impact of speech on health.
Speech, in both its positive and negative forms is mainly viewed with regard to politics,
religion and other such aspects but its role in health is underestimated. Take for instance the
mental health of an individual who has to listen to degrading comments on his race, ethnicity,
social status or physical appearance. Body shaming as well as other forms of defamatory speech
have especially become rampant in the wake of cyber bulling that may arise out of unchecked
freedom of speech (Strossen, 2018).

FREEDOM 3
Role of Media in Freedom and Hate Speech.
Having looked at the perception of both freedom of speech and hate speech, it’s
important to find out how both are propagated. The press plays a major role in this respect.
Various states have put in place mechanisms to provide for freedom of the media and this is vital
in encouraging free speech. Such provisions ensure the media is protected as it carries out its
mandate to provide information to the public. In that respect, free speech is encouraged
positively, a major shift from past times when dictatorial governments regulated information to
the disadvantage of citizens.
Although the press has made steps in free speech, hate speech has also been
propagated through the same media. The press as stated by Peter Feeney, has a role to not only
air news but also has a responsibility to consumers and should not propagate information that
may cause harm (Feeney, 2017). By airing hate speech by certain individuals, the media
propagates negativity which may result in conflict among ethnic groups or war based on race and
other unwanted outcomes. It is therefore inevitable to conclude that the press in propagating
what may seem to be ‘interesting’ information, consider the effect it will have.
Conclusion.
A middle ground between freedom of speech and regulation of the same using
standard parameters for all members of the society is the way forward to ensure protection of
rights for all .In dealing with hate speech, everything should be done but freedom of speech
should not be curtailed and hopefully find the much needed central position.

FREEDOM 4
References.
Doyle, E. (2018). Freedom of speech on campus. Greenhaven Publishing LLC, p.95.
Feeney, P. (2017). Combatting Hate Speech in Print and Broadcasting Media. [online]
Presscouncil.ie. Available at:
http://www.presscouncil.ie/office-of-the-press-ombudsman-164/publications-and-press-
releases/press-releases-1048/combatting-hate-speech-in-print-and-broadcasting-media [Accessed
31 Aug. 2018].
Herz, M. and Molnár, P. (2012). The content and context of hate speech. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, pp.134- 426.
Strossen, N., 2018. HATE: Why We Should Resist It with Free Speech, Not Censorship. Oxford
University Press, pp. 12-165