The boundaries of freedom of expression & order in American democracy /

This compilation is the product of the first annual Kent State University symposium marking the historic 1970 shootings at that campus. The essays and commentary--two short responses and the author's rebuttal accompany nine of the eleven essays--discuss traditional First Amendment analysis, the judiciary's policy-making role, political communication, academic freedom, school violence, and emerging communications technologies. This last topic is considered by several of the contributors. Of particular interest are J. David Slocum's discussion of political protest as legal narrative and Cass Sunstein's depiction of the Internet's dominant consumer paradigm as a threat to deliberative democracy. The contributors primarily summarize positions more fully developed elsewhere, and because of limitations imposed by the symposium, few of the brief responses provide much insight or meaningful debate. Further, the Second Amendment essay, though interesting, is tangential to the work as a whole. This collection does, however, demonstrate the richness and salience of freedom of expression versus social order as a topic for study and shows that law alone cannot adequately negotiate these conflicts: other disciplines have much to contribute. Recommended for advanced undergraduates and above. D. E. Smith Northwest Missouri State University