Constitutional Law (The 1987 Philippine Constitution: A Comprehensive Reviewer 2011 Edition) Flashcards
Article III (Bill of Rights)
Section 3(1).
Newsounds has been operating a radio station in Cauayan, Isabela. When renewal of the permit was sought to continue operation in the same place, he was denied on the basis of a zoning ordinance.
Was this a form of regulation of speech?
Jurisprudence distinguishes between:
(1) a content-neutral regulation (merely concerned with the incidents of the speech, or one that merely controls the time, place, or manner, and under well-defined standards); and
(2) a content-based restraint or censorship (the restriction is based on the subject matter of the utterance or speech).
Content-based laws are generally treated as more suspect than content-neutral laws because of judicial concern with discrimination in the regulation of expression. Content-neutral regulations of speech, or of conduct that may amount to speech, are subject to lesser but still heightened scrutiny. Ostensibly, the ordinance was a content neutral zoning ordinance. However, under the circumstances of the case, the real purpose of the ordinance was to silence the station which had been a strong critic of the local administration. The ordinance therefore must be viewed as a content-based regulation.
(Newsounds Broadcasting v. Dy, G.R. Nos. 170270 & 179411, April 2, 2009)
Article III (Bill of Rights)
Section 4.
What do “speech”, “expression”, and “press” include?
Speech, expression, and press include every form of expression, whether oral, written, tape, or disc recorded. It also includes movies as well as what is referred to as symbolic speech, such as the wearing of armband as a symbol of protest. Peaceful picketing has also been included within the meaning of speech.
