"There is no legal alchemy by which a State may thus create the cause of action that would otherwise be denied for a publication which, as respondent himself said of the advertisement, "reflects not only on me but on the other Commissioners and the community." Raising as it does the possibility that a good faith critic of government will be penalized for his criticism, the proposition relied on by the Alabama courts strikes at the very center of the constitutionally protected area of free expression."
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Justice William J. Brennan, decision, New York Times Co. v. Sullivan, Supreme Court of the United States, 376 U.S. 254 (1964).
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/New_York_Times_Co._v._Sullivan
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New York Times Co. v. Sullivan
New York Times Co. v. Sullivan, 376 U.S. 254 (1964), was a United States Supreme Court case which established the actual malice standard which has to be met before press reports about public officials or public figures can be considered to be defamation and libel; and hence allowed free reporting of the civil rights campaigns in the southern United States. It is one of the key decisions supporting the freedom of the press.
17 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by New York Times Co. v. Sullivan →
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