1、1 For additional information, see CRS Report 95-804, Obscenity and Indecency: ConstitutionalPrinciples and Federal Statutes.2 Miller v. California, 413 U.S. 15, 27 (1973).3 Id. at 24 (citation omitted). Congressional Research Service The Library of CongressCRS Report for CongressReceived through the
2、 CRS WebOrder Code 98-670 AUpdated June 29, 2004Obscenity, Child Pornography, andIndecency: Recent Developments and Pending IssuesHenry CohenLegislative AttorneyAmerican Law DivisionSummaryThe First Amendment provides that “Congress shall make no law . . . abridging thefreedom of speech, or of the p
3、ress . . . .” The First Amendment applies, with twoexceptions, to pornography and indecency, with those terms being used to refer to anywords or pictures of a sexual nature. The two exceptions are obscenity and childpornography; because these are not protected by the First Amendment, they may be, an
4、dhave been, made illegal. Pornography and indecency that are protected by the FirstAmendment may nevertheless be restricted in order to limit minors access to them.Obscenity1To be legally obscene, and therefore unprotected by the First Amendment,pornography must, at a minimum, “depict or describe pa
