The document discusses the relationship between journalism, freedom of speech, and the consequences of their abuse by both the press and governments. It raises critical questions about the ethical responsibilities of journalists and the impact of media on democracy and public opinion, exemplified by historical cases like the Hillsborough disaster and Nazi propaganda. The author aims to explore these themes in greater depth through research on both past and current examples of press freedom and censorship.

1. Research

2. My chosen Discipline: Journalism
• What I know already:
• I was already aware of what can happen when power or freedom of speech is
abused e.g. When Hitler came to power or, in a more modern example,
censorship in Hong Kong.
• I am also aware of what can happen when the press cross a moral and ethical
line e.g. The Sun's coverage of the infamous 1989 Hillsborough disaster.
• Questions I have heading into my research:
• What happens when the press abuse and squander their own freedoms?
• What are the benefits of freedom of the press in a democracy?
• However, the most important question that I ultimately want to answer is:
• What is the importance of a free press in society?

3. My Chosen Discipline
• What am I looking at: Journalism
• Why: To study freedom of speech and how it can be used or misused by
governments.
• How: I will be using both historical and modern examples of battles for free
speech as well as censorship in order to clearly bring my argument across
• What experience I already have (previous projects): While I have no experience
with written journalism, as such, I do write scripts for audio projects in a logical
and well-researched way.
• What I hope to learn: I hope to have a more in-depth understanding about
freedom of speech and the pros and cons that come with it.

4. https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=bunHURgi7FcC&pg=PA194&redir_esc=y#v=on
epage&q&f=false
Main points/notes:
• Censorship of freedom of speech
• Hitler's rise to power as leader of Germany
• Jewish persecution through Nazi propaganda.
Summary of how this information will help/inform me for my essay:
• This information will be used to demonstrate what can happen
when freedom of the press is suppressed, a democracy is turned
into a dictatorship and how state-controlled media can manipulate
people's opinions.

5. https://www.theguardian.com/football/2009/apr/18/hillsborough-anniversary-sun-
newspaper
Main points/notes:
• Coverage of an infamous football disaster
• Reaction from the community where the incident took place.
• Boycott of newspapers following publication of misinformation.
Summary of how this information will help/inform me for my essay:
• I intend to use these points as a means of showing what can happen
when a newspaper abuses the freedoms they have been given
and, in doing so, get their facts on an important story completely
wrong followed by the reactions of the town's affected citizens in
the immediate aftermath.

6. https://www.airforcemag.com/article/0207pentagon/
Main points/notes:
• Leak of a study to the media by a political activist.
• Censorship of the press by the current governing body.
• Battle between the press and the government over the right to
publish, as written in the First Amendment of the Constitution.
Summary of how this information will help/inform me for my essay:
• I hope to make a point using this information of what can happen
when the press and government's interests clash and the ensuing
court cases that can often follow.

7. List of other sources
• On the Confluence of Freedom of the Press, Control of Corruption and Societal Welfare. Social
Indicators Research. 129 (-), 859-880.
• https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/fake-news-stories-make-real-news-
headlines/story?id=43845383
• https://www.theguardian.com/media/2009/jul/08/murdoch-newspapers-phone-hacking
• https://www.theguardian.com/media/2006/aug/09/royalsandthemedia.themonarchy
• www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/phone-hacking/8624738/News-of-the-World-closed-following-
phone-hacking-scandal-how-Princes-knee-led-to-fall-of-a-giant.html
• https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/leveson-inquiry-report-into-the-culture-practices-and-
ethics-of-the-press
• https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/sn-times-slammed-ignoring-hillsborough-
11247940
• https://www.theguardian.com/media/2011/jul/20/phone-hacking-inquiry-broadcasters-social-media
• http://www.columbia.edu/itc/journalism/j6075/edit/readings/watergate.html
• https://www.telegraph.co.uk/journalists/gordon-rayner/8812486/Leveson-Inquiry-British-press-
freedom-is-a-model-for-the-world-editor-tells-inquiry.html
• http://ieg-ego.eu/en/threads/european-media/censorship-and-freedom-of-the-press

8. My chosen Discipline: Journalism
• Reflective summary on the answers to the questions I started with:
- When the press abuse their freedoms, there are two things that can happen: 1. They will
cross an ethical line by doing something completely unforgiveable, such as The Sun printing a
false story on what happened during the infamous Hillsborough disaster or News of the
World hacking illegally into people's phones.
2. They can intentionally or accidentally aid in the creation of a dictatorship, which inevitably
leads to media being commandeered to influence and/or brainwash others into sharing their
views, such as how the Nazis influenced the citizens of Germany into believing the Jews were
evil.
The benefits of having a free press in a democracy is that journalists are allowed to share
their views and opinions with their readers, without fear of government censorship, thereby
promoting the concept of freedom of speech itself.
The importance of a free press is completely dependent on how a nation or country is run by
a governing body with their political leanings partially playing an important part on how the
public sees the press. If it is democratically run, a mixture of opinions is welcomed with
liberal and conservative supporters alike allowed to express their views and opinions as
freely as they wish.