The article under analysis is “Politicized rantings on two blogs by a ‘daviddepape’ are drawing scrutiny” by Charlie Savage, Alan Feuer, and Kellen Browning (2022). The New York Times post provides that investigators of the Paul Pelosi assault case investigate some related Facebook blogs. The investigation seeks to find out whether there is a connection between the assaulter, David DePape, and hateful comments posted by daviddepape. The blogs contain paranoid and angry postings about anti-white racism, pedophilia, elite control of the internet, and antisemitism (Savage et al., 2022). The law enforcement personnel refused to reveal whether the blogs belonged to Mr. DePape, who was arrested for assaulting Paul Pelosi with a hammer. As they investigate further, the law enforcement officers revealed that DePape sought to attack Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi when he found her husband in their California home. Nancy Pelosi has been the target of rage from the right side throughout her political career. Indeed, pro-Trump rioters attempted to attack her in 2021. Furthermore, the assaulter was asking for Nancy as he attacked her husband.
The article involves constitutional law because hate speech falls under the freedom of expression on social media provisions. The right to freedom of speech allows all American citizens to freely express their opinions regarding all societal matters (Pinkus, 2021). DePape is protected by the First Amendment in freedom of expression regarding his political views on social media. However, the First Amendment provides that hate speech can be criminalized if it incites criminal activities or violence (Pinkus, 2021). The DePape blogs are said to have insensitive and hateful comments about anti-white racism and antisemitism, among other issues. In this case, the investigators must consult constitutional law to determine whether the blog posts violate the right to freedom of speech. If they conclude that the hateful comments incite violence, the case can be criminalized and solved under criminal law.
References
Pinkus, B. M. (2021). The limits of free speech in social media. Accessible Law.
Savage, C., Feuer, A., & Browning, K. (2022). Politicized rantings on two blogs by a ‘daviddepape’ are drawing scrutiny. The New York Times.