Freedom of the press

Historical Background
Despite its origins in the context of printing, ‘’’freedom of the press’’’ has come to be interpreted as protecting communication to the public generally, regardless of the medium. Print media, motion pictures, broadcasting, cable television, and even the mails have come to be considered as the “press” for purposes of the First Amendment. As the Supreme Court has said, "[press] comprehends every sort of publication which affords a vehicle of information and opinion.”

Moreover, while some have argued that freedom of the press was only intended to shield the dissemination of news and opinion, the protections of the First Amendment have been extended to protect scientific, literary, and artistic messages as well.

The printing press provided, for the first time, a capability for mass communication, whereby one individual or organization could inform, entertain, or persuade many others. At the time the Constitution was written, publishing in the United States had not yet become the “mass medium” it is today. A craftsman printer produced one page at a time, and could produce about 2000 copies of it in a 10-hour day. The technology was inherently egalitarian; it took neither political power nor large sums of money for an individual to publish a work. The “freedom of the press” had a more or less literal meaning; government was prohibited from licensing or otherwise control ling the use of the technology.