“If there is a bedrock principle underlying the First Amendment, it is that government may not prohibit the expression of an idea simply because society finds the idea morally offensive or disagreeable.” It is because I believe these words by Justice Brennan, I stand for the negation of today’s resolution, that “When they Conflict, Respect for....... Cultural Sensitivity Ought To Be Valued Above Commercial Use of Free Speech.” My value for today’s debate is that of Free expression, which I will define as the freedom to express our thoughts, ideas, and beliefs, freely and openly, My criteria is the degree to which free speech is allowed in thebusiness environment.I have three contentions to support my value of Free Expression, and tonegate the resolution. My first contention is, It is virtually impossible to avoidoffending someone’s culture in our multi-cultural society. Second, Freedom ofspeech is based on our valuing the autonomy of individuals to make informeddecisions. My third contention is that there is no moral responsibility of thecommercial media to suppress certain speech because it violates some culturalsensitivity.My first contention is It is virtually impossible to avoid offending someone’sculture in our multi-cultural society. As Edward J. Eberle states, “One man’svulgarity, is another man’s lyric.”. The concept of cultural sensitivity is too vaguea concept to be enforced. One can intend no offense, and yet offense can betaken. How many people must be offended before it constitutes culturalinsensitivity? In a country that will tolerate hate speeches by the Ku Klux Klan inthe name of free speech, it is unreasonable to limit the commercial use of freespeech because someone might be offended by a commercial. Let thegeneral public determine what is offensive and they will react with disfavor. Ifthe public felt strongly enough to boycott products and servi...
