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Nadelmann, Kurt H. "The Newspaper Privilege and Extortion by Abuse of Legal Processes." Columbia Law Review, 54:59-74, March 1954. N1
Notes on abuses resulting from newspaper publication or comment on a case filed with a judicial officer but not yet tried.
Nafziger, Ralph O. International News and the Press: an Annotated Bibliography. New York, Wilson, 1940. 193p. N2
Part I covers works on world press associations, including press censorship during the war. Part II covers the foreign press, geographically arranged.
-------. "World War Correspondents and Censorship of the Belligerents." Journalism Quarterly, 14:226-43, September 1937. N3
The author reports on censorship of news during World War I as revealed by the files of professional and trade publications in the United States and Great Britain. Abstract of a chapter in his doctoral dissertation, The American Press and Public Opinion during the World War, 1914 to 1917.
"The Naked and the Obscene." Economist, 156:1126-27, 18 June 1949. N4
Review of "the existing mechanisms by which censorship is or can be imposed" in Great Britain and of the weaknesses of the present system. The editor recommends an amendment to the Libel Act of 1888 "that no prosecution for alleged obscene writings should be launched without the fiat of the Attorney General," to protect author and publisher from nuisance prosecution.
Natarajan, Swaminath. A History of the Press in India. New York, Asian Publishing House, 1962. 425p. N5
A study of the growth of the press in India and the obstacles it encountered in a struggle for freedom.
Nathan, George Jean. "The Censor Psyche [etc.]" American Mercury, 11:113-15, May 1927. (In his Clinical Notes column) N6
"The men who devote themselves to censorship are simply men who have not, with the aid of experience, wisdom, and honor, outgrown the childish desire for indiscriminate havoc. They are thus what may be designated as emotional morons . . . "In another note, Nathan attributes to censorship the encouragement of literary craftsmanship. "The author is put to it to defeat censorship with the devious complexities of the literary art, the subtle shadings, the fine circumlocutions, all the shrewd and masterly jugglings of the English language."
-------. "Deceptio Visus." American Mercury, 11:243-44, June 1927. N7 §
While admitting that censorship at some point might be justified (e.g., selling Fanny Hill to school children at a nickel a copy) his quarrel is with the censor, who is generally stupid. "It is they who are ruining the cause of censorship amongst even censorship's more rational proponents."
-------. "If Holly Wood came to Dunsinane." American Mercury, 63:598-604, November 1946. N8
The author considers what the legitimate stage would be like if a code similar to that of the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America were in effect. He lists code regulations and specifications and, under each, examples of plays which could not be produced without alterations.
-------. "In the Matter of the Lid." American Mercury, 17:242-43, June 1929. N9
"The one big unanswered question concerning censorship as we engage in it in this day and hour is this: Why is it that censorship, designed by its own admission to safeguard the young, the susceptible and the ignorant, four times out of five disports itself not in that quarter at all but exercises itself sedulously against institutions and works whose appeal is directly and almost entirely to unsusceptible and intelligent adults."
-------. "Master Minds of Censorship. Some Reflections on the Inconsistency of the Guardians of Our National Soul." Vanity Fair, 26:57, 102, July 1926. N10
While New York burlesque, which caters almost exclusively to hardened audiences, is subject to frequent police raids, New York legitimate theater, far dirtier, but attended by a more genteel audience, is untouched by the censor. Nathan cites 67 episodes, in plays produced during the past season, of rape, seduction, incest, degeneracy, etc.--more than one-third of the plays showing. "Not a voice has been raised against any of them. And yet the moralists go down into a remote corner of the town, where men and women are tough as stale beefsteaks, and demand that the lid be clapped on the innocent spectacle of a fat girl shaking her middle."
-------. "A Programme for Censorship." American Mercury, 13:369-71, March 1928. (Reprinted in Downs, The First Freedom, pp. 279-80) N11 §
Writing in the Clinical Notes column of American Mercury during the 20's Nathan frequently applied his witty and irreverent remarks against censorship and the censors. In this article Nathan recommends that since we cannot get rid of censorship altogether, we settle the argument between the "smutsters" and the "liberals" by altering the present obscenity statute so that the artist is condemned after the commission of the crime, not before it. Nathan would require proof that a person has been corrupted by a book. "Let us have the witness in the box and let him swear on the Bible to his ruin." In Clinical Notes for April 1926, Nathan notes the spread of the "doctrine that there is considerable humor in sex" as opposed to an earlier view that "sex is a grim, serious and ominous business."
[Nation, Carrie]. "Mrs. Nation Discharged; Well-Known Saloon Smasher Acquitted by Commissioner May." Hatchet, 2:11, 1 September 1906. N12
This militant prohibitionist was arrested and brought to trial before U.S. Commissioner A. W. May, charged with sending obscene matter through the United States mails. The offending publication was the 1 July issue of The Hatchet, mailed in Guthrie, Okla., containing an article on masturbation entitled "Private Talk to Little Boys." The same issue chides President Theodore Roosevelt for not taking action against the "113 whore houses within six blocks of the White House." The case was dismissed, the Commissioner finding the article to be not obscene.
"The Nation and the Post Office." Nation, 107:236-37, 28 September 1918. N13
Editorial criticizing the banning of the 14 September 1918 issue of The Nation by the Post Office Department because of an article critical of the government's labor policies. Mr. Burleson is no longer merely seeking to prevent sedition, but is aiming "to control public opinion."
"Nation Ban." Nation, 168:647-49, 11 June 1949. N14
Ban of The Nation from the New York City public schools.
National Association of Book Publishers. "Publishers Outline Stand on Censorship." Publishers' Weekly, 104:1837, 8 December 1923. N15
To meet the criticism that their stand on censorship was unknown, the publishers' association adopted this statement which proclaims that publishers stand back of their books and authors. The statement decries censorship efforts of private groups; it calls for admission of expert testimony at book trials, consideration of a book as a whole, and consideration of the intent and purpose of the author. It urges that books written for adults not be judged on the effect they might have on the immature.
National Association of Broadcasters. Addresses at the 39th Annual Convention of the National Association of Broadcasters. Washington, D.C., The Association, 1961. 39p. N16
Includes addresses by President John F. Kennedy, LeRoy Collins, president of the NAB, and Newton N. Minow, chairman of the FCC. Minow's talk was given wide publicity for his sharp criticism of the "vast wasteland" in television programs. While stating his opposition to government censorship he warned that the FCC would consider the station's contributions to the public interest at the time of license renewal. He called upon the industry to live up to the great potential of the medium.
-------. Broadcasting and the Bill of Rights . . . Washington, D.C., The Association, 1947. 322p. N17
A collection of statements presented by representatives of the broadcasting industry before the Senate Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce (17-27 June 1947) opposing the White Bill (S. 1333) which would expand functions of the FCC to include program control. The spokesmen not only presented specific criticisms and recommendations on the proposed bill, but expressed convictions relating to the whole subject of federal regulation in the field of radio broadcasting. Text of the bill is included.
-------. Editorializing on the Air. Washington, D.C., The Association, 1959. 40p. N18
Includes a report of the Committee on Editorializing and a resolution of the NAB, adopting the report and approving a policy favoring and encouraging editorializing by broadcasters. The FCC report on Editorializing by Broadcast Licensees of 2 June 1949 is printed in full. It authorizes identified editorializing, providing "the public has a reasonable opportunity to hear different opposing positions on the public issues of interest and importance in the community."
-------. N.A.B. Wartime Guide. Washington, D.C., The Association, 1941. (Reprinted in Summers, Wartime Control of Press and Radio, pp. 283-86) N19 §
-------. An Operational Guide for Broadcasting the News. Washington, D.C., The Association, 1958. 28p. N20
A brief history of news broadcasting, policies on editorializing, a statement on the responsibility of broadcasters to keep the public informed, and a code of conduct in covering public meetings and court proceedings. Prepared by the Freedom of Information Committee.
-------. Radio Code of Good Practices. Washington, D.C., The Association, 1962. 12p. N21
First adopted by the industry in 1937; revised from time to time. The Code deals with program standards and ethics relating to such matters as news, public issues, political broadcasts, religious programs, and children's programs. It also includes a section on advertising standards.
-------. Seal of Good Practice. Washington, D.C., Television Code Authority of the National Association of Broadcasters, [1963?]. 11p. N22
A popular presentation of the purpose of the Television Code, how the Code functions, and what it means to the viewer.
-------. The Television Code. 9th ed. Washington, D.C., The Association, 1964. 30p. N23
The Television Code of good practice was enacted in 1952 by the Television Board of the National Association of Broadcasters. The Code is administered by the Television Code Authority. Revisions of the Code have been made from time to time. The 14 chapters of the present Code are as follows: Advancement of Education and Culture, Responsibility toward Children, General Program Standards (covers obscenity, profanity, ridicule of race or religious faith, brutality, etc.), Community Responsibility, Treatment of News and Public Events, Controversial Public Issues, Political Telecasts, Religious Programs, General Advertising Standards, Presentation of Advertising, Advertising of Medical Products, Contests, Premiums and Offers, and Time Standards for Advertising.
National Board of Review Magazine. New York, National Board of Review of Motion Pictures, 1926-42. Monthly. Superseded by New Movies. N24
The news organ of the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures, which published the judgment of the Board on movies and frequently carried commentary on movie control.
National Board of Review of Motion Pictures. Boston (Mass.) Method of Motion Picture Regulation. New York, The Board 1919. 8p. N25
-------. Brief by Mayor Gaynor in Opposition to Censorship of Motion Pictures. New York, The Board n.d. 8p. N26
New York' s mayor opposed legislation for state control of motion pictures.
--------. Case Against Federal Censorship of Motion Pictures. New York, The Board, 1916. 5p. N27
-------. Handbook on the Regulation of Motion Pictures; Including a Model Ordinance, Based on the Report of the Special Committee of the New York State Conference of Mayors and Other City Officials . . . New York, The Board, 1921. 8p. N28
--------. The National Board of Review of Motion Pictures; Its Background, Growth and Present Status. New York, The Board, n.d. 15p. N29
--------. Objection to State Censorship of Motion Pictures. New York, The Board, 1921. 6p. N30
--------. Official Opinion on Censorship and an Ordinance for the Regulation of Motion Pictures. New York, The Board, 1917. 5p. N31
--------. Policy and Standards of the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures. New York, 1915. 23p. N32
--------. Question of Motion Picture Censorship. New York, The Board, 1921. 16p. N33
--------. Report. Annual, 1910/11-1919/20? N34
--------. Repudiation of Motion Picture Censorship in New York City; Report of the Committee on General Welfare of the Board of Aldermen, June 10, 1919. New York, The Board, 1919. 6p. N35
--------. Standards of the National Board of Review of Motion Pictures Adopted by the National Association of the Motion Picture Industry, January 19, 1917. New York, The Board, 1917. 15p. N36
-------. State Censorship of Motion Pictures. New York, The Board, 1921. 6p. (Reprinted in Rutland, State Censorship of Motion Pictures, pp. 117-23) N37
Arguments against censorship include: It is an invasion of constitutional rights; the censors can't agree; there is no popular demand for censorship; movie censorship represents unjust discrimination against one medium; censor confuses good taste with morals; and censorship would reduce the movies to child's entertainment. An account is given of the work of the National Board of Review, founded in recognition of the screen's right to freedom.
-------. "What the National Board of Review Stands For." Motion Picture Magazine, 14(8):43-44, September 1917. N38
A report on the activities of the organization that reviews "practically 99% of all photoplays exhibited in the United States."
National Broadcasting Company. NBC Radio and Television Broadcast Standards. New York, N.B.C., 1956. 43p. N39
Chapters on standards of program content, advertising content, and operating procedures. Program content includes such topics as controversial public issues, political campaigns, religion, sex, profanity and obscenity, defamation, race and nationality, and references to living persons.
National Catholic Welfare Conference. "The U.S. Bishops' Statement of 1957 on Censorship." In Gardiner, Catholic Viewpoint on Censorship, pp. 185-92. N40 §
This statement from the Conference's administrative board presents the position of the Catholic Church with respect to moral censorship. Along with freedom of expression in America is also the "duty to exercise it with a sense of responsibility." Freedom of expression is not absolute; it has a moral dimension. "Obscenity cannot be permitted as a proper exercise of a basic human freedom." Legal restraints should be applied prudently and cautiously, leaving to the Church the responsibility for upholding standards of morality. The National Office for Decent Literature and the Legion of Decency (films) are twin organizations of the Church intended to oppose harmful and offensive materials on the stage and screen and in publications. They evaluate materials and seek to "enlist in a proper and lawful manner the cooperation of those who can curb the evil. . . . Neither agency exercises censorship in any true sense of the word."
"National Censorship of Motion Pictures." Survey, 26:469-70, 1 July 1911. N41
Brief review of the work of the National Board of Censorship of Motion Pictures.
National Conference on the Freedom of the Press. London. Freedom of the Press. Conference held at The Central Hall, Westminster, June 7th 1941; Convened by the National Union of Journalists and the National Council for Civil Liberties. London, The National Council and The Union [1941]. 12p., 6p., 4p. N42
Contains statements on press freedom from secretaries of the National Union of Journalists, National Federation of Building Trade Operatives, Paul Rotha, Frank Owen of the Evening Standard, and Sunder Kabadi of the Bombay Chronicle, among others. A resolution on freedom of the press was adopted. Bound with the report of the conference is a statement, Censorship of the Indian and Colonial Press, and Indirect Censorship, the latter dealing largely with the actions of the National Association of Wholesale Newsagents.
National Council for Civil Liberties. Civil Liberties Defended. Case Book of the National Council . . . London, The Council, 1941. 19p. N43
Includes references to freedom of the press in wartime Britain.
-------. Civil Liberty. London, The Council. Published periodically since 1937. N44
Source of information on current events in freedom of the press and censorship in Great Britain.
-------. The Press and the War. London, The Council, [1941?]. 22p. N45
Criticism of government restrictions on the press in wartime. "If Britain is to remain free the Press, too, must remain free, and . . . restrictions upon the freedom of expression are a prelude to national disaster." Report prepared by John White for the Press Freedom Committee headed by Frank Owen of the Evening Standard.
-------. Press Freedom. London, The Council, 1942. 21p. N46
The Council objected to the use by the British Home Secretary of Defence Regulation 2D to suppress the newspaper press; to the withdrawal of the subsidy to export Picture Post to the Middle East; to censorship of the press in Palestine; and to the extension of cable censorship by the Minister of Information. The Council requests the abolition of Defence Regulation 2D and the lifting of the ban on the Daily Worker. It also condemns individual reporting that gives a distorted picture of British war efforts.
-------. Your Freedom in Danger. Why Civil Liberty Today Is Essential in the Defence of the Nation. London, The Council, [1943?]. 12p. N47
National Council for the Social Studies. "The Treatment of Controversial Issues in the Schools." Social Education, 15:232-36, May 1951. N48
A report by the Committee on Academic Freedom, adopted by the Board of Directors in 1950 and 1951. The statement defines the role of the teacher in the study of controversial issues and suggests criteria for evaluating teaching materials in these areas.
National Council of Jewish Women. "Censorship and Complacency in Education." Council Platform, 7:5, May 1963. N49
A discussion of the impact of censorship as opposed to concensus on American education.
-------. Censorship: Safeguard or Threat. New York, The Council, 1956. 45p. N50
Prepared by Mrs. Betty Rosen and Miss Helen Raebeck and designed as a discussion guide in the Council's Freedom Campaign.
National Council of Public Morals (Great Britain). Cinema Commission of Inquiry. The Cinema: Its Present Position and Future Possibilities. Being the Report of and Chief Evidence Taken by the Cinema Commission of Inquiry. London, Williams and Norgate, 1917. 372p. N51
An unofficial committee of religious, scientific, and cultural leaders instituted this study of "the physical, social, educational, and moral influences of the cinema, with special references to young people" to investigate "complaints which have been made against cinematography exhibitions." Testimony includes statements from representatives of the movie industry, education, public welfare, ministers, police officers, YMCA, the Billposters Association, and the British Board of Film Censors. The report recommends continuance of present censorship; that local authorities show only films "on the white list, issued by the trade"; and that the public refuse to enter a theater which does not restrict itself to films on the list. The report also recommends the exclusion of social, moral or religious propaganda films and the appointment of a national film advisory council. A questionnaire circulated indicated that 75 per cent found no objection to the films for children and observed no harmful effects. Only 35 per cent reported local censorship, mostly by the police. "If British producers will follow such high standards," the report concluded, "and free us from the nauseating stuff, much of which is imported from America, they will help to make the cinema a worthy asset in national life." A survey of movie censorship practices in other countries is given in the appendix.
The National Council of Teachers of English. Censorship and Controversy; Report of the Committee on Censorship of Teaching Materials for Classroom and Library. Chicago, The Council, 1953. 56p. N52
The report was prepared to help teachers meet the threats of censorship of textbook and library materials, restrictions on speakers, and denial of the right to consider controversial topics in the classroom. The report considers the problem as a joint responsibility of teachers, students, administrators, parents, and community leaders. It suggests procedures in meeting criticism, principles for selecting materials, and statements of other organizations relating to academic freedom, such as the National Education Association, National Council for the Social Studies, American Library Association, Association of American Colleges, National Congress of Parents and Teachers, American Textbook Publishers Institute, American Book Publishers Council, and American Legion.
-------. Resolution on Censorship. Champaign, Ill., The Council, 1960. 1p. mimeo. N53 §
-------. The Students' Right to Read. Champaign, Ill., The Council, 1962. 21p. (Reprinted in Illinois Libraries, May 1966; excerpted in Education Digest, May 1963) N54
A guide to teachers and administrators on how to resist local campaigns that seek to prevent students from reading well-established authors. The Council senses growing community pressures to remove important books from classrooms and libraries. A program of action and a procedure by which a citizen may request the reconsideration of a book used in a school is included.
The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. ["Censorship Issue"]. Information Service, 39(21-1):1-8, 24 December 1960. N55
The entire issue, prepared by the Council's Bureau of Research and Survey, deals with problems of censorship.
National Council on Freedom from Censorship. Abolish Motion Picture Censorship in New York State. A Brief in Support of a Bill Now Pending in the New York State Legislature to Abolish the Board of Censors . . . New York, The Council, 1933. 5p. mimeo. N56
-------. The "Bad Book" Bill. New York, The Council, 1933. 4p. mimeo. N57
Brief in support of a bill before the New York State Legislature to amend procedures in prosecuting obscene and indecent literature.
-------. Censorship Covers up but Does Not Cure . . . New York, The Council, 1941. 7p. N58
The Council was organized in 1932 by the American Civil Liberties Union. It undertook a nationwide campaign to oppose censorship in all forms, in all areas of communications. Its three-point program called for repeal of censorship laws; test cases in the court; and an information campaign. The Council considered the post office and customs as the offenders and obscenity as "their big card." Quincy Howe is listed as chairman of the Council, which includes prominent authors, editors, and educators.
-------. Censorship of Motion Pictures. New York, The Council, 1939. 12p. N59
-------. Freedom from Censorship. New York, The Council, 1946. 8p. N60
Brief paragraphs on the definition of obscenity, censorship by the post office and customs, censorship of books, radio, motion pictures, and the stage. Includes a statement on the platform and program of the Council.
-------. Memorandum in Support of a Bill Abolishing the Censorship of Motion Pictures and Increasing the State's Revenue from Taxes on Films, New York State Legislature, 1934. New York, The Council, 1934. 19p. N61
Arguments: Censorship of movies has not accomplished the intended purpose of protecting the public; the system entails public expenditures without public benefits; artificial standards are maintained; control should be left to the same measures as for press and education; only a jury should judge, not a professional censor; censorship is generally discredited over the country; and moral persuasion is superior to legal suppression.
-------. "The Miracle" Decision. New York, The Council, 1952. 6p. N62
"The Supreme Court, by unanimous vote, has just rendered two historic decisions on movie censorship. On May 26, it declared unconstitutional a New York State ban on the Italian film 'The Miracle'; and on June 2 it invalidated a municipal ordinance of Marshall, Texas, under which showings of the American film 'Pinky' had been prohibited."
-------. An Outline History of the Post Office Censorship. New York, The Council, 1932. 29p. mimeo. N63
Includes 12 brief case histories and 20 examples of conflicting court decisions.
-------. The Post Office Censor . . . New York, The Council, 1932. 13p. N64
In support of a bill before Congress to abolish postal censorship and substitute jury trial for all seized matter. The pamphlet describes how postal censorship works and what actions have been taken against works involving sex education and birth control, politics, and religion.
-------. Repeal the Theatre Padlock Law and Abolish Censorship by the Prosecutor's Office. New York, The Council, 1933. 5p. mimeo. N65
A brief in support of a bill now pending in the New York State Legislature to amend a law which provides that a theater may be padlocked for one year if a theatrical production playing there is convicted of indecency or obscenity.
-------. What Shocked the Censors! New York, The Council, 1933. 98p. N66
"A complete record of cuts in motion picture films ordered by the New York State censors from January, 1932 to March, 1933." Foreword by Hatcher Hughes, chairman of the Council, and introduction by Professor Edward C. Lindeman.
National Defense Association. Constitution. New York, The Association, [1879?]. 4p. N67
The objectives of the Association were to investigate all questionable cases of prosecution under federal and state Comstock laws and to defend persons "unjustly assailed by the enemies of free speech and free press." Rev. A. L. Rawson was the first president and Dr. E. B. Foote the first secretary.
-------. Words of Warning to Those Who Aid and Abet in the Suppression of Free Speech and Free Press. New York, The Association, 1879. 61p. N68
The Association, formed in 1879 to aid victims of the Comstock laws, helped to secure a petition of 50,000 names to present to Congress urging repeal. Comstock's friends were more influential lobbyists, however, and prevented any changes in the law. An auxiliary of the National Defense Association was the Boston Defense Association, formed in January 1879 to help the victims of the New England vice society. Benjamin R. Tucker was one of its officers.
National Institute of Municipal Law Officers. "Obscene Literature and Comic Books: Workshop No. 3, Proceedings of the 1959 Annual Conference." Municipal Law Review, 23:498-544, 1959. N69
Discussion centered around the U.S. Supreme Court case of Roth v. United States and the case involving Lady Chatterley's Lover (Kingsley International Pictures Corp.). Actions against obscene publications in New York, Chicago, Cincinnati, Greensboro, Los Angeles City and County were reported. Text of the Los Angeles County ordinance, held unconstitutional by the California Supreme Court (Katzev v. County of Los Angeles, 1959), is included.
National Legion of Decency. National Center for Film Study. [Classification List]. New York, The NLD, 1935?-date. Biweekly. N70
Lists films by classification (A, B, C), according to moral standards established by this Catholic group. The organization publishes on alternate weeks a Catholic Film Newsletter, which includes lengthy annotations of recommended films. The two publications are prepared by the National Center for Film Study (a division of the Catholic Adult Education Center, Chicago) which is the educational affiliate of the National League of Decency. The classification system is described in Gardiner, Catholic Viewpoint on Censorship, pp. 94 ff.
National Liberal League. [First Annual Congress]. Equal Rights in Religion. Report of the Centennial Congress of Liberals, and Organization of the National Liberal League, at Philadelphia on the Fourth of July, 1876. Boston, The League, 1876. 190p. N71
The League was made up largely of New York and Boston intellectuals, including Elizur Wright, James Parton, O. B. Frothingham, and Francis E. Abbot as president. While the League was unanimously opposed to the Comstock laws, its membership was split over whether the laws should be modified or repealed. When repeal advocates took over, Abbot resigned and Wright became president. The final decision on the Comstock laws was postponed for a subsequent convention.
-------. [First Annual Congress]. Patriotic Addresses to the People of the United States, adopted at Philadelphia on the Fourth of July, 1876, by the National Liberal League . . . Boston, The League, 1876. 23p. N72
Includes texts of resolutions passed at the first convention of the League, which emphasize separation of church and state. They call for the prohibition of Bible reading in the public schools and urge freedom of expression for all religious ideas, orthodox or heterodox.
-------. [Second Annual Congress]. Circular to the Auxiliary Leagues for 1878 and 1879, Containing Address of the President and Directors . . . Official Report of the Proceedings Had and Resolutions Passed at Syracuse, N.Y., October 26th and 27th, 1878 . . . New York, The League, 1879. 42p. N73
In his address to the second annual convention Elizur Wright comments on the difference of opinion of members over obscenity legislation, some wishing repeal, others modification, but all agreeing that the federal postal laws as administered had been "a most flagrant attack upon the freedom of the press." The resolution of the conflict over the obscenity laws was postponed for another year.
-------. Third Annual Congress Held at Cincinnati, Ohio, September 13 and 14, 1879. New York, Liberal and Scientific Publishing House, 1879. 115p. N74
President Elizur Wright's address deals largely with freedom of the press including references to the persecution of Editor D. M. Bennett. The convention passed resolutions, proposed by Colonel Ingersoll, favoring freedom of the mails for all matters "irrespective of the religious, irreligious, political, and scientific views," but opposing dissemination of obscene matter through the mails, including the Bible, until it can be expunged of passages "that cannot be read without covering the cheek of modesty with the blush of shame." "Good morals and habits," the resolution stated, "can be better fostered by education, persuasion, industry, and healthy amusement, than by force and government interference." The League held a fourth meeting in Chicago in 1880 and it was at that meeting that Ingersoll resigned over the resolution for repeal of the Comstock law. The League was reorganized as the American Secular Union in 1885.
"National Library Week Brings Film Furor to Fairfax County." Library Journal, 88:2216-17, 1 June 1963. N75
Fairfax County (Virginia) public libraries celebrated National Library Week by showing documentary films on brotherhood and international good will. American Legion Post 177 detected subversion and a censorship hassle developed.
National Office for Decent Literature. The Drive for Decency in Print. Report of the Bishops' Committee Sponsoring the NODL. Huntington, Ind., Our Sunday Visitor Press, 1939. 218p. N76
Includes a report of progress of the NODL against salacious literature, cooperation of law enforcement agencies, new state laws, support of related Catholic agencies, and A Guide for Judging Magazines According to the NODL Code.
-------. NODL Newsletter. Chicago, NODL, 1956-date. Quarterly. N77 §
In 1938 the Catholic bishops of the United States established a National Organization for Decent Literature (name changed to "Office" in 1955) "to set in motion the moral forces of the country . . . against the lascivious type of literature which threatens moral, social and national life." The quarterly newsletter reports on activities and procedures in the crusade and lists comic books, magazines, and paperbacks it considers contrary to the NODL Code and objectionable for youths.
-------. What is NODL? Chicago, NODL, n.d. 19p. N78
Includes a statement on how the lists of objectionable publications are prepared and how they are intended to be used in local communities.
National Purity Congress. The National Purity Congress, Its Papers, Addresses, Portraits . . . Baltimore, October 14, 15 and 16, 1895. Edited by Aaron M. Powell . . . New York, American Purity Alliance, 1896. 453p. N79
The first convention of the purity movement in the United States, a forerunner of modern social hygiene, brought together a curious association of men and women, normally antagonistic, but with a common concern in sexual purity. The one group, represented by Anthony Comstock, was mainly interested in suppression of sexually demoralizing literature; the other, which later included the free speech advocate Theodore A. Schroeder, sought freedom for sex education. The organization ultimately became the World's Purity Federation, with headquarters in LaCrosse, Wis., led by B. S. Steadwell. Its publication was The Light. Included here are papers by Anthony Comstock, Demoralizing Literature, and Josiah W. Leeds, The Relation of the Press and the Stage to Purity. A photograph of Comstock appears on page 419; a photograph of B. O. Flower, editor of the Arena, appears on page 305.
[National Union of Journalists and the National Council for Civil Liberties]. Freedom of the Press and the Challenge of the Official Secrets Acts . . . [London, NUJ and NCCL, 1938]. 30p. N80
Speeches made by Major G. Lloyd George, Dingle Foot, Compton Mackenzie, L. C. White, A. P. Herbert, Kingsley Martin, C. J. Bundock, and R. Willis at a conference called by the National Union of Journalists and the National Council for Civil Liberties. The purpose of the conference was to call attention to dangerous tendencies towards suppression of free opinion in Britain and particularly to the perils contained in the Official Secrets Acts.
National Vigilance Association for the Repression of Criminal Vice and Public Immorality. Reports. London, The Association, 1885-99. Annual. N81
This Association superseded the Society for the Supression of Vice, and was itself succeeded in 1899 by the Public Morality Council. Its work was comparable to that of the New York Society for the Suppression of Vice, serving to instigate proceedings against obscene literature. The Association was formed at the time of the "Maiden Tribute" (white slave) scandal and was headed for many years by William Alexander Coote. Its first major censorship effort was against Henry Vizetelly for publication of the novels of Zola.
The Nationalization of the Bill of Rights. Freedom of the Press. 30 min., b/w movie. New York, Encyclopaedia Britannica Films. (Structure and Functions of American Government Series) N82
Professor Peter H. Odegard discusses the importance of freedom of the press in the formation of American democracy.
"The Nation-wide Battle over Movie Purification." Literary Digest, 69:32-33, 14 May 1921. N83
Reports on the conflict over what reforms should take place in the motion picture industry--many state officials urging censorship boards, the industry opposing censorship, and the press taking sides, but mostly against censorship.
Neal, John S., Jr. "The Federal Communications Commission and Its Licensing Function in the Public Interest." Temple Law Quarterly, 21:135-39, October 1947. N84
Nealy, W. A. Motion Picture Censorship and Organized Labor. New York, National Board of Review of Motion Pictures, [1920?]. (Reprinted in Rutland, State Censorship of Motion Pictures, pp. 106-13) N85
The president of the Massachusetts Federation of Labor expresses the opposition of organized labor to film censorship, quoting a resolution to this effect from the 1916 convention report of the AFL and a report from the Executive Council. State censorship of films, he states," is inimical to the free institutions of this country."
[Nearing, Scott]. Free Speech and Press Go to Trial with Scott Nearing. [New York, 1918?]. 8p. N86
Background of the Scott Nearing espionage case, with a brief account of Nearing's life and philosophy and an appeal for contributions for his defense.
-------. Scott Nearing's Address to the Jury. The Speech before the Jury when Charged with a Violation of the Espionage Act. New York, The Rand School of Social Science, [1919?]. 30p. N87
[-------]. The Trial of Scott Nearing and the American Socialist Society. Presiding Judge--Julius M. Mayer; Attorneys:--for the Government, Earl B. Barnes; for the Defense, Seymour Stedman . . . S. John Block . . . Walter Nelles. . . [and] I. M. Sackin . . . United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, New York City, February 5th to 19th, 1919. [New York, The Rand School of Social Science, 1919]. 249p. N88
Scott Nearing, a leader in radical thought in America and a teacher at the Rand School, was indicted under the Espionage Act of 1917 for having written The Great Madness, a pamphlet expressing his views of the relation of big business to the conduct of World War I. The work was charged with obstructing the draft. Nearing was acquitted but the same jury convicted the American Socialist Party for publishing the work.
Nebraska. University. School of Journalism. Latin American Journalism. [Lincoln, Nebr.], The School, 1954. 31p. (Contribution to Bibliography in Journalism) N89
Contains a number of references to books and journal articles on freedom of the press in Latin American countries. Arranged by countries.
Nedham, Marchamont. The Great Accuser cast down; Or, A Publick Tryal of Mr. John Goodwin of Colemanstreet, London, At the Bar of Religion & Right Reason. It Being a full Answer to a certain Scandalous Book of his lately published, Entituled. The Triers Tried and Cast, &tc. Whereupon being found Guilty of High Scandal and Malediction both against the present Authority, and the Commissioners for Approbation and Ejection, He is here sentenced and brought forth to the deserved Execution of the Press. London, Printed by Tho. Newcomb, for George Sawbridge, 1657. 137p. N90
A violent attack on Goodwin by a fellow journalist who hoped by it to gain favor with Cromwell.
"Need to Know; Meeting at Northwestern University." Newsweek, 38:57-58, 8 October 1951. N91
Highlights of a conference on freedom of information attended by representatives of American press and radio.
Neep, Edward J. C. Seditious Offenses. With an Introductory Note by Harold J. Laski. London, Fabian Society, 1926. 30p. (Fabian Tracts no. 220) N92
Nehls, Edward, ed. D. H. Lawrence: A Composite Biography . . . Madison, University of Wisconsin Press, 1959. 3 vols. N93
These volumes contain references throughout to censorship action taken against Lawrence's work--the ban on Lady Chatterley's Lover, the seizure of the Pansies manuscript (including debate in Parliament over the incident and the Obscene Publications Act), and seizure of Lawrence's paintings by London police. The events are often reported in correspondence between Lawrence and friends.
[Neilson, Samuel, et al.]. A Faithful Report of the Second Trial of the Proprietors of the Northern Star for the Insertion of the Society of United Irishmen's Address to the Volunteers of Ireland on the 19th December, 1792. By a Barrister. Belfast, 1795. 56p. (A similar report of the first trial was published in 1794) N94
The formation of the Society of United Irishmen in Belfast in 1791, urging Irish independence, served to increase government persecution of the opposition press. This was carried out through such measures as use of spies, bribery, military raids, and, ultimately, libel charges in the courts. The Northern Star became the United Irishmen's spokesman. Its 12 proprietors, including Samuel Neilson, who also served as editor, were arrested in December 1792 for publishing the Dublin United Irishmen's Address to the Volunteers. After an 18-month delay, a part of the harassment plan, they were brought to trial before Lord Clonmell, but for a different libel. The printer was sentenced; the proprietors freed. At a second trial (November 1794) for the original libel, the defense was assured a verdict of "not guilty" by showing that a loyal paper, the Belfast News-letter, had published the same Address a day before it appeared in the Northern Star. In May 1797 a military party entered the office of the Northern Star without a warrant and destroyed the printing plant.
Neilson, William A. "The Theory of Censorship." Atlantic Monthly, 145:13-16, January 1930. N95
The president of Smith College explores "what principles are implied in the suppression of books and other forms of expression and whether these are in harmony with common sense and the ideas which lie at the basis of our social structure." Neilson closes with a quote from the critic, Sir Walter A. Raleigh, referring to the novels of Fielding: "Books are written to be read by those who can understand them; their possible effect on those who cannot is a matter of medical rather than literary interest."
Neilson, Winthrop, and Frances Neilson. Verdict for the Doctor; The Case of Benjamin Rush. New York, Hastings, 1958. 245p. N96 §
The celebrated Philadelphia libel case against William Cobbett, 1799. Cobbett had published a series of scurrilous articles in his Porcupine's Gazette attacking Dr. Rush for his methods of treating patients duting the yellow fever epidemic in Philadelphia. Arguments in the trial were based on whether or not Cobbett's attacks were privileged under "freedom of the press." The case became a struggle between Federalist supporters of Cobbett and Republican supporters of Rush, although Rush had the support of both Adams and Jefferson. The jury ruled in behalf of Dr. Rush, fining Cobbett $5,000. Cobbett departed soon afterwards for England. Rush's lawyers were Joseph Hopkinson, William Lewis, Moses Levy, and Jared Ingersoll; Cobbett's lawyers were William Rawle, Edward Tilghman, and Robert Goodloe Harper.
Nekvasil, M. E. Control of Public Diffusion of Knowledge and Ideas: Fascist, Communist, Liberal. Chicago, University of Chicago, 1957. 65p. (Unpublished Master's thesis) N97
Nelles, Walter, ed. Espionage Act Cases, with Certain Others on Related Points; New Law in Making As to Criminal Utterance in Wartime. New York, National Civil Liberties Bureau, 1918. 92p. N98
Contains extracts from significant court decisions and statutes.
-------. and Carol W. King. "Contempt by Publication in the United States." Columbia Law Review, 28:401-31, April 1928; 28:525-62, May 1928. (Reprinted by American Civil Liberties Union, 1928. 79p.) N99
A reconsideration of the doctrine that the courts have "inherent" power to punish summarily contempts by publication. The first part of the study deals with the development of the doctrine down to the passage of the Federal Contempt Statute in 1831. The second part deals with court decisions since that date. An appendix gives a table of statutory provisions by states.
Nelson, Harold L. "Home-Grown Suppression: Press Restraint in Colonial America." Grassroots Editor, 2:12-13+, October 1961 N100 §
"The colonial press was more effectively throttled by home-grown entities than by the towers of aristocratic authority holding power under the king." The author cites the elected assemblies (after 1736) as "the fiercest oppressor of the press that existed in colonial times." After 1765 they were joined by patriot groups in suppressing printers.
-------. Libel in News of Congressional Investigating Committees. Minneapolis, University of Minnesota Press, 1961. 174p. N101
"This study attempts to discover and describe activities of legislative investigating committees that may not furnish a basis for the immunity of the press from liability from libel in reporting such activities."
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