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Jan 1, 1467
British Censorship
Bestowing and denying printers privileges became a major form of government control of the press in England -
Jan 1, 1502
Spanish Censorship
Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain required all printed works to be licensed, which means approved in advance by government or church authorities -
Jan 2, 1502
Spanish Censorship
Another form of press restriction in Spain was burning offensive books by the Inquisition -
Jan 1, 1521
German Censorship
Edict of Worms in Germany includes requirement that printers submit to prior censorship -
Jan 1, 1538
English Regulation
All printed works in England must be licensed after this date -
Jan 1, 1561
French Censorship
In France, flogging becomes the first-time penalty for those who circulate defamatory or seditious broadsides or pamphlets. Repeat offenders are subject to the death penalty; press remains tightly controlled in France until French Revolution in 1789 -
Defense of Press Freedom
John Milton publishes Areopagitica, a pamphlet defending press freedom during the English Civil War -
Press Freedom in England
Oliver Cromwell restores press controls in England -
English Censorship
Licensing Act restricts press lapses in England -
Massachusetts Censorship
Governor and council of colony of Massachusetts close America’s first newspaper down after its first issue -
Press Freedom
Licensing Act ends permanently after the “Glorious Revolution;” becomes more difficult for authorities to control content of newspapers -
English Censorship
Stamp tax imposed on newspapers in England -
Triumph for Press Freedom
Jury finds John Peter Zenger, the publisher of the New-York Weekly Journal, innocent of seditious libel. -
American Protest
American press rises in protest against Stamp Act -
Townshend Acts
British Parliament institutes series of taxes on goods imported into America, including paper -
French Censorship
More than 100 people imprisoned for circulating illegal pamphlets in France -
French Censorship
Because of strict press controls, Paris has only four newspapers -
American Censorship
President John Adams signs Sedition Act, which makes it a crime to write, print, utter or publish attacks against U.S. government -
Rights for Reporters
States passing laws limiting the power of judges to hold reporters to contempt of court -
Stamp Tax Prevails
Circulations of legal newspapers in England continue to be held down by the stamp tax on each copy -
American Press
President Woodrow Wilson leads United States into World War I and hires press agent to support effort; George Creel also serves on censorship board -
Espionage Act
Under the Espionage Act, U.S. government revokes the mailing privileges of many non-mainstream (socialist) newspapers -
American Press
Number of U.S. radio stations skyrockets to 576; “toll” is charged for use of airtime on stations -
Radio Act
Radio Act establishes a Federal Radio Commission to assign radio frequencies and grant licenses; replaced by Federal Communications Commission in 1934 -
American Press Freedom
U.S. Supreme Court rules in Near v. Minnesota that prior restraint of the press is allowed under only the most unusual of circumstances -
First TV Broadcast
TV broadcasting begins in U.S. -
American Press Freedom
“Pentagon Papers” released; Supreme Court finally rules that government’s argument for prior restraint of the press is not sufficiently strong in this case -
American Censorship
Reporters blocked from covering initial stages of U.S. invasion of Caribbean island of Grenada; group of journalists that managed to land on the island were prevented by U.S. military officials from reporting what was happening for two days -
Guidelines Abolished
The guidelines for minimal accounts of non-entertainment programming are aboloshed. -
Fairness Doctrine
"Fairness Doctrine" is eliminated. -
Clinton's Signing
President Clinton signs the "Telecommunications Act of 1996". -
Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmier
This court case ruled that schools have the right to restrict speech freedom of students if the speech is inconsistent with the shared values of society. -
Children's Television Act
Congress passed the “Children's Television Act”, which lessened the amount of advertising permitted each hour on children's programs. -
FCC Regulations
The FCC lessened regulations to allow companies to own TV and radio stations in the same market. -
Rewrite of Communications Act
The new Republican Party proposes a rewrite of the 1934 Communications Act. -
FCC Decision Blocked
The House approved a spending bill that blocked the FCC decision to allow major television networks to own up to 45% of the country's viewers. -
FCC Approves Cable Sale
The FCC approves the sale of nearly all of the cable systems and assets of Adelphia Communications Corporation to Time Warner Inc. and Comcast Corporation. -
Sung Censorship
Sung emperors began to censor and suppress non-governmental newssheets before the demise of their dynasty in 1279
