International Encyclopedia of Communication Online

Extract

North America consists of 23 countries, including the United States, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean Island nations, and Central America. The continent also encompasses several territories and possessions such as Greenland. The United States dominates the region, especially in the area of communication law and policy, with Canada next in line. Except for Cuba, all of the countries in the region are democracies, with most of the legal systems based on the American system, English common law, or French civil law. All of the countries have constitutions that protect the right of freedom of expression. The extent of the right in practice, however, varies. In the 2008 Freedom House classification regarding freedom of the press, 16 of the countries are free (46 percent), 17 are partly free (48 percent), and 2, Cuba and Venezuela, are not free. The United States has the oldest constitution on the continent. Protection for freedom of expression falls under the First Amendment, which states that: “Congress shall make no law … abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press” (→ Freedom of the Press, Concept of ). Although the provision originally applied only to Congress, it has been extended to governments at the state and local levels as well. The First Amendment is written in absolute language, but the protection it provides has never been absolute. The level of protection tends to vary ... log in or subscribe to read full text