"Individual Self-Fulfillment" & "Promote Innovation": My Key Theories of the Key Theories

First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution via WikiMedia Commons

    There are eight values of free expression, the summary of rights outlined in the First Amendment to the
United States Constitution, that demonstrate its importance and why it is necessary. The eight values are Marketplace of Ideas, Participation in Self-Government, Stable Change, Individual Self-Fulfillment, Check on Governmental Power, Promote Tolerance, Promote Innovation, and Protect Dissent. At this point in my life, the values of free expression that are most important to me are Individual Self-Fulfillment and Promote Innovation.

    C. Edwin Baker describes Individual Self-Fulfillment, or Self-Actualization, as the value that explains how free expression helps people discover their true identity and have full autonomy. If people cannot speak their thoughts freely, it makes it harder for them to really understand who they are. This is most important to me right now because as a college student, I am at the point in my life that is all about discovering who I am. Obviously people's interests can change in the future, but in college, I am meant to find out what I want to spend my life, or at least the next part of my life, doing. 

    Not only does free expression help with discovering my identity through my passions, but it also helps with determining my values and beliefs. Typically, kids' values and beliefs are parallel to that of their parents because that's what they've been exposed to for their whole lives. However, once they reach high school, and college especially, they begin to re-evaluate those positions. Sometimes they end up keeping the ones they had before, and sometimes they form new ones. Either way, at this point, they have reasons for their beliefs; they aren't just echoing their parents' sentiments. Being able to express these newfound beliefs is a key part of solidifying them, and with that, ones identity. As a college student who has moved seven hours away from home and my parents, my surroundings, at times, are quite different than my house in terms of the morals, positions on some stances, as well as just the environment itself. The student body of High Point is not congruent to the student body of my high school or my town. Now that I am in a new place, as well as in college, where expressing beliefs is encouraged, I have had a greater opportunity to evaluate my stances and determine if I have those values for the right reasons. This would be much more difficult without free expression because if expression was not encouraged or protected, it could make it harder to talk through issues or hear opposing viewpoints.. 

    In sum, Individual Self-Fulfillment is very important to me right now because I am using my right to free expression to help determine who I am, what I want to do, and what I want to stand for. 

Recently rebooted movie poster comparisons
via Mountain Echo

    The other value that is important to me is Promote Innovation. Jack Balkin explains that this value describes how free expression benefits innovation by allowing people to create and think of new ideas without interference. In the abstract of the hyperlinked paper, Balkin emphasizes technological innovation, however, in my life, it is more applicable in the creative sense. Innovation is important to me because in the future, I would like to work in the entertainment industry in some capacity. My dream job would be to write and create movies and TV shows. I have always enjoyed writing and storytelling, and I would love
to bring those stories to life on the big and small screens. Right now, I currently think there is a lack of innovation in the film and television industries. Production companies seem to be creating more and more reboots of past movies and shows because they know they will turn a profit off of it. Although the lack of new original content is not a result of the government infringing on anyone's First Amendment rights, it is still a great example of what can happen if no innovation is allowed. In this scenario, innovation could be discouraged because production companies might be less inclined to risk putting money into a new idea when they know a remake will work. Granted, money is important to running a business, however, all of this emphasis on recreating what's already been done is taking away from new stories and limiting the innovation involved with creating said stories. After college, I want to go out to Los Angeles and create new content and new stories. Being able to freely express myself has allowed me to be creative with many aspects of my life, whether it be in the stories I write or the the school projects I create, which is why the value of Promote Innovation is so important to me. 

    Although Individual Self-Fulfillment and Promote Innovation are the two values of free expression that are most important to me, I think the value that is most vital to America right now is Protect Dissent. Protect Dissent, explained by Steve Shiffrin, is the label of the value that all people's opinions are protected by the First Amendment, no matter how few people agree with that opinion. People are allowed to express their grievances with the government and should be able to do so without fear of being silenced by the government. Also, although private actors are well within their rights to censor someone with a dissenting opinion, people need to understand that dissenting opinions ARE protected by the First Amendment and can help to create the best government. 

    This connects back to John Milton's value of Marketplace of Ideas which encourages all ideas to be put on the table so people have the most information when making a decision. In the end, when an idea is challenged by another, the truth of what the best option is will ultimately arise, thus leading to an improved government or the necessary solution to a given problem. Right now, America is extremely divided politically, and if people and organizations strive to silence the voices of those that disagree with their opinions, although it might not be unconstitutional, it still goes against the entire essence of the First Amendment. People have the right to express themselves and just because private actors can sensor them, that does not mean they should. Having a multitude of opinions is what makes a democracy, a democracy- a form of government in which the power comes from the governed. If all who are governed are only allowed to express the majority opinions, that creates a government where the power and control comes from the government itself, thus taking away the power that belongs to the people. In conclusion, in order to maintain the Marketplace of Ideas that is also vital, people must accept and incorporate the value of Promote Dissent and allow others to share their opinion, regardless of how unpopular it may be. 

    In summary, although all eight values of free expression are connected, Individual Self-Fulfillment and Promote Innovation are the most important to me right now as a college student who wants to create original movies and TV shows in the future. Of all of the values, Protect Dissent is the most vital to America right now because of how divided we are politically, which has caused a great deal of censorship to opposing views, thus stifling the Marketplace of Ideas, which is also important to America and any democracy that advocates for free expression.