Doktryna „wolnego rynku idei”. Geneza, ewolucja oraz praktyczne zastosowanie
A doctrine of “a free marketplace of ideas”. The origins, evolution and practical application

Summary/Abstract: Many arguments were used to account for the postulate of granting an individual the broadest scope of the freedom of expression. Among them, a predominating and most pertinacious was a hypothesis that a free speech is especially precious as it leads to the revelation of the truth. The latter, however, will be brought to light when all the opinions are clearly expressed under the circumstances of a free and unregulated marketplace of ideas. A doctrine of a free marketplace of ideas, the beginning of which dates back to 1644, remains the most significant form of specification of the idea of the freedom of speech. It shapes international standards of speech freedom, not only in the world of the Western culture. The supreme courts in democratic countries (including the Polish Constitutional Tribune) refer to it, justifying their adjudications in cases in which the heart of the matter concerns the freedom of expression. It has been so despite numerous voices of criticism addressed at the doctrine in question for at least several dozen years. In the light of the above-mentioned, it seems necessary and intentional to present the origins, evolution and a practical application of a doctrine of “a free marketplace of ideas”.

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