Tom Bradshaw







John Stuart Mill: Freedom of expression and harm in the 'post-truth' era

This paper contends that John Stuart Mill's arguments for freedom of expression – despite being first published in 1859 - remain a powerful framework through which contemporary issues of free speech can be explored and taught. As part of an analysis of Mill's On liberty, the notion of intolerance being the default condition of mankind and restrictions on free speech being a trans-generational wrong are delineated. The issue of on-campus censorship is discussed, as are the prominence and causes of self-censorship in both the media and wider society. The usefulness of Mill's On liberty as a means of exploring these contemporary problems of free speech is expounded, particularly the enduring usefulness of his Harm Principle, and a phenomenon that is called the Paradox of Liberal Inheritance is identified. The concept of alethic disruption is developed to investigate the emergence of 'post-truth' news, and a Mill-inspired response to this is outlined. It is argued that Mill articulates principles that modern media students can use as an accessible means of approaching questions of media ethics, and that On liberty also makes powerful points about the etiquette of intellectual debate.

Keywords: John Stuart Mill, freedom of expression, harm, 'post-truth' era


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Note on the contributor

Tom Bradshaw is Senior Lecturer at the University of Gloucestershire's School of Media, where he is course leader for the BA (Hons.) Sports Journalism programme. He studied philosophy at the University of Cambridge and then journalism at the University of Central Lancashire before becoming a news and sports journalist. He has worked as a print, online and radio journalist for organisations across the UK and South Africa. He currently works as a freelance journalist and broadcaster for the BBC and The Times, among others, and has contributed to The Times Literary Supplement. His research interests include uses of technology in education and media ethics, particularly self-censorship.