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"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances."

The First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, quoted above, is justly held to provide the basis for America's tradition of a free press. In drafting the amendment, America's Founding Fathers affirmed the fundamental right of citizens to be informed about all sides of an issue without governmental interference. Thomas Jefferson even went so far as to write: If it were left to me to decide whether we should have a government without a free press or a free press without a government, I would prefer the latter. Belief in the importance of a press free of governmental control has remained constant throughout American history.

At the time the First Amendment was written, the printing press was the only means of mass communication. Today, freedom of the press is understood to apply to radio, television and telecommunications as well.

• Freedom of Speech and Press: Exceptions to the First Amendment - CRS Report

• American Civil Liberties Union: Free Speech
• Committee to Protect Journalists
• Electronic Privacy Information Center: Free Speech
• First Amendment Center
• Free Expression Network
• Freedom Forum
• Freedom of the Press Freedom House
• Media Coalition
• The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press