The First Amendment Right to Free Speech: Right and Responsi

However, calls to action and obscene material aren't protected by the First Amendment. So, where does speech or print material become obscene?.
             In the late 80s, TV evangelist Jerry Falwell took Larry Flynt, the publisher of adult magazine Hustler Magazine, to court regarding a parody of an advertisement where Falwell is depicted losing his virginity during drunken sex with his mother. Falwell claimed to have suffered severe emotional distress although the basis of the story is true, and Falwell was originally awarded $200,000 for damages. After four years in the court system, it took a decision by the Supreme Court of the United States to overturn the original decision.
             In the book Jerry Falwell v. Larry Flynt written by Rodney Smolla, a law professor, attorney, and expert on First Amendment issues, Smolla discusses the impact of this case regarding the Supreme Court's treatment of the First Amendment.
             According to him, this case was a resounding triumph for the rights of free speech in a free society.
             "For many Americans, it is inconceivable that the First Amendment could be intended to protect Hustler Magazine and the type of crude, mean-spirited attack Flynt launched against Falwell," Smolla stated in his book. "Surely, they think, Hustler is beneath the dignity of the First Amendment. Surely, freedom of speech is not an absolute license of licentiousness. Flynt's coarse speech is nothing but excrement, a form of moral pollution fouling the cultural environment.
             "For other Americans, Hustler is the quintessential example of what ought to be protected by the First Amendment. Tolerance is often nothing but indifference. It is easy to defend freedom of speech when the speech is bland, polite, and civilized. Tolerance is only meaningful when the speech is jarring to mainstream sensibilities Larry Flynt and Hustler constantly push us to the outer limits of our tolerance. If we are really to be a pluralistic and open culture we must be willing to embrace all speech, even speech at the extremes, for it is only by such toleration that we give meaning to the ideal of an open society.