Jerry Falwell V. Larry Flynt: The First Amendment on Trial

by Rodney A. Smolla

Book Overview

In February 1988, the Supreme Court handed down its decision on one of the most explosive challenges to the First Amendment in legal history. The case began in 1983, when Larry Flynt and Hustler magazine published a parody that portrayed the Reverend Jerry Falwell--leader of the powerful Moral Majority--as a drunk who engaged in sexual relations with his mother. A shocked Falwell sued Flynt for defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312022255
• ISBN13: 9780312022259
• Release Date: January 1988
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 1.50 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Porn, fundamentalism, and the first amendment

What better combo could there be? I'm not a student of law, but I still found this to be a facinating story about its history and importance. The descriptions of Larry Flynt are colorful and often times halarious. Fawell doesn't exactly come out looking like an angel either, but I found Smolla's treatment of both characters to be fair. Ultimately, the conclusion of this book are right on. Flynt and Falwell are both hustlers of the American Dream. They just sell their versions from opposite ends of the spectrum.

Fascinating Insider View of First Amendment Strategizing

Rod Smolla knows how to tell a story. We all know Larry Flynt is colorful, what we didn't know is how brilliant his young attorney was in getting the Falwell trial heard in the "Live Free or Die State" when Hustler's distribution there was about 1% of its national sales. A must read for any staunch defender of the First Amendment.