The riots in Ferguson, Missouri as a sequel of the movie ‘The Purge’ - Freedom of Speech in the Age of New Media

Abstract

In the wake of the Supreme Court decisions in Stevenes v. US and Brown v. Entertainment, shielding animals cruelty depictions and violent video games under the freedom of speech, an invisible and dangerous line has been crossed. This paper will argue that these decisions and the violent message they carry with them, seeps under the surface of the American society fabric - conscious and unconscious - causing unprecedented consequences. These consequences can be seen in the movie the Purge, the riots in Ferguson and the events that caused them and even in the academic discourse as it unfolds in the media ecology association list serve.