90.1k views
1 vote
According to the Court, which of the following types of expression contain little social value and fail to contribute to social debate?

A. Political speech.
B. Obscenity.
C. Hate speech.
D. Symbolic speech.

User Srohde
by
8.9k points

1 Answer

3 votes

Final answer:

The types of expression that the Court views as having little social value and contributing minimally to social debate include obscenity and certain forms of symbolic speech.

Step-by-step explanation:

According to the Supreme Court, the types of expression that contain little social value and may fail to contribute to social debate are categories such as obscenity, libel, slander, and some forms of symbolic speech. Obscenity, in particular, is subject to less protection under the First Amendment due to its highly offensive nature and lack of substantial importance to public discourse.

The Miller test is used to evaluate whether material is obscene. Unlike political speech, which is highly protected, obscene speech does not contribute to the exchange of ideas or the search for truth, and thus has limited constitutional protection. On the other hand, symbolic speech can be protected, depending on the context and the action involved - the more an expression is action-based rather than word-based, the less protection it might have under the First Amendment.

User Jacob Manaker
by
7.2k points