Was OJ censored?
I ran across this post at After Hours in which the writer is upset over OJ Simpsons book being cancelled. She claims it falls under the category of censorship. I disagreed and here is why:
Free Speech can only be censored or denied by the Government for it to be a violation of the 1st amendment as she is implying in her post.
Marci Commented:
Why do people always misuse the word “censor”? The book has not been censored
Marci is right the book was not censored. Censorship in this post implies Govt. control. In this case the book was cancelled.
No-one has the right to have anything published. Publishers routinely turn down submissions for any reason. And in such cases it is a few people who control the fate of a book as opposed to public opinion. Is that worse? Should all books be published? That being said… everyone has the right to publish anything they want by themselves. In this day it can be as simple as a library computer (free) and a blogger.com account (free) so no-one is being denied the right to publish any idea they want. If Blogger.com cancelled your account because they didn’t like what you wrote, that is their right as a private entitiy. If OJ really wanted to publish this book. He could find a printer to print it and sell it on the internet through Amazon. He has the means and could find the backing im sure.
My personal feeling when I first heard about it was of complete dis-interest. I had no desire to watch the interview and no desire to read the book and this was before the public outcry.
I have absolutley no problem with a non-governemental organization censoring themselves for any reason. That on its own is a right that should not be denied.
