Political class wants you to hate the media

The media isn’t an enemy of the American people. Speaking truth to power is one of the most sacred rights protected by the First Amendment. Open criticism of public officials is the best, most agile method of holding politicians accountable. It’s why so many elected officials are more than happy to muzzle the media. Regardless of our partisan leanings, we should reject political gag orders at every turn.

This one is personal for me.

My family went through years of hellish litigation because a now-deceased member of Alabama’s State Board of Education didn’t appreciate a column I wrote about her perspectives on special needs children. She made her comments on a video which I included with my column.The facts clearly weren’t in her favor, but she didn’t care. Ultimately, we prevailed before the Alabama Supreme Court, but I learned the hard way how much the political class hates scrutiny, even if it’s factually accurate.

Political speech is the heart and soul of the First Amendment. When Americans criticize their elected officials, the Constitution’s protections are “at its zenith,” as the Supreme Court clearly stated in Meyer v. Grant (1988).

Get over the idea that this is a partisan issue. Democrats are eerily silent over Matt Taibbi’s reporting on efforts by federal government officials and bureaucrats to censor political opponents on Twitter. One Democrat dared to speak the truth.

“The Supreme Court said we want free speech to be open, uninhibited wide-ranging,” noted Rep. Rho Khanna, D, Calif. “I get Twitter’s a private actor, but they’re effectively a modern public square. And it was disappointing to me that they were suppressing the New York Post.”

Republican politicians are also perfectly willing to silence their critics. Florida state Sen. Jason Brodeur recently introduced legislation which would “require bloggers to file extensive periodic reports with the state if they are paid for posts about the state’s governor, lieutenant governor, cabinet members or legislative officials.”

None of these political silencing efforts serve the interest of the American people. Encroachments on political speech are the feverish dreams of the political elite. From Democratic “fixes” to Citizens United v. FEC (2010) to former President Donald Trump’s interest in overturning the “actual malice” rule articulated in New York Times v. Sullivan (1964), we must combat efforts to further limit political speech for the benefit of our political class.

America’s elected officials are counting on each of us thinking about speech we oppose in order to give them the power to change the law in their favor. What happens when the speech we favor is in the crosshairs? Conservatives should imagine a world in which Democrats can sue them for unintentional factual inaccuracies about the 2020 election. Liberals should consider whether restricting corporate speech also puts a gag in the mouth of their union supporters.

Politicians want us to be angry. When we’re enraged, we stop thinking critically. We run to them for solutions, which they readily provide … for their own benefit.

Don’t surrender the Constitution. As annoyed as we become with our political opponents, as vile as the attacks become, government-curated speech is not free speech at all.

Facing litigation for my opinions about an elected official’s public comments shocked me to my core. Even as a lawyer, I’d never faced personal legal action before that attacked my character and credibility. All I did was provide my opinion about available facts.

At times, I wondered whether I should stop writing entirely. That’s exactly what politicians want.

The school board member who sued me wanted to shut me up because the truth was politically inconvenient for her. If anything, states should enact laws that disincentivize such strategic lawsuits against public participation. The answer to unfavorable speech isn’t censorship; it’s more speech.

Americans are best served when our political class feels the heat of critique. In an ideal world, every media personality should tell the truth, present the facts, and keep the spin to reasonable levels. Our elected officials should be held to the same standard. Until that becomes reality, we must rigorously protect political speech in America.

Cameron Smith is a columnist for al.com.