Freedom Of Free Speech And Expressions In Digital Era
- IJLLR Journal
- Feb 8
- 2 min read
Taniya, LL.M., IILM Law School
1. INTRODUCTION
“Give me the liberty to know, to argue freely, and to utter according to conscience, above all liberties” - John Milton
The essence of freedom of speech is very well depicted by the quotation of John Milton above. John Milton asserted that the knowledge and any other area of human activity couldn’t advance without self-determination. Human freedom means to be the free review of any opinion and the freedom of thoughts and opinions expressed.
The Right enshrined in the Constitution of India signifies the ability of an individual to hold and communicate beliefs and opinions.
Freedom in this particular sense entails the ability of an individual to communicate any aspect of his opinion in any way possible that may include talking, writing, printing, putting up banners, signs, or even choosing to remain silent.
The rise of technology companies into the core of media and communications has added new aspects to the long-running argument on the freedom of expression. Such social media has provided amazing features which traditional media did not have such as greater reach and engagement of the audience to the content shared by them, but they also come with some challenges.
Free speech is guaranteed and secured by the national human rights law. Even considering the regulatory protection of free speech, the development of new technologies, particularly the Internet, poses the question of whether free speech can still be protected in the old way. It should be noted that the Internet and the transformation of media are already becoming a new space for the globalization of communication. What needs to be stressed however, is the need for free expression and to address the hazards in the today’s digital era.
