Reach of Online Speech Raises New Issues of Freedom

Commentary
Inside the First Amendment

By Gene Policinski
First Amendment Center vice president/executive director

When the poetic line “Oh what a tangled web we weave …” was penned a few centuries ago, Sir Walter Scott had no idea what irony those words might have when applied to the 21st century’s world of blogs, tweets, Web sites and free expression.

Over just a few days in the last two weeks, these tangled issues were making news: