Constitution Day
ATT: Dinah Zeiger
JAMM - University of Idaho
P.O. Box 443178
Moscow, ID 83844-3178
FAX: (208) 885-6450
E-MAIL: dzeiger@uidaho.edu
Lesson 5: The Pentagon Papers: Freedom of the Press vs. National Security
Framing Questions
Goals
- What is rightful public knowledge versus government secrecy for national security purposes?
- What is the role of the press during wartime?
- Is freedom of the press a help or a hindrance for a democracy in times of conflict?
- What are the consequences of maintaining secrecy?
Goals
- Understand when and why it might be legitimate to keep information from the press and the people.
- Connect the Court’s rationale in New York Times v. United States to constitutional guarantees against prior restraint.
- Explain the inherent conflict between transparency in government and the national security rationale for secrecy.
- Discuss the choice implied by the decision in Pentagon Papers that the defense of the First Amendment poses: does scrutiny of government actions enhance democracy because it promotes accountability and reform or does it make Americans more vulnerable to attack?