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54 Ariz. L. Rev. 375 (2012)
Freedom of Speech, Liberal Democracy, and Emerging Evidence on Civility and Effective Democratic Engagement

handle is hein.journals/arz54 and id is 387 raw text is: FREEDOM OF SPEECH, LIBERAL DEMOCRACY, AND EMERGING EVIDENCE ON CIVILITY AND EFFECTIVE DEMOCRATIC ENGAGEMENT Toni M. Massaro* & Robin Stryker On January 8, 2011, a mentally disturbed man opened fire on Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords at her Congress on Your Corner event. Six people died and several others, including the Congresswoman, were seriously wounded In the aftermath of the tragedy, a renewed call to more civil political discourse arose, followed immediately by strenuous objections to this call on constitutional, political, and practical grounds. In this Article, we address these objections and conclude that none is sufficiently compelling to derail a civil political-discourse project. We argue that the more important issues are whether, and how, incivility in political discourse poses a problem for democracy. Facts matter in the debate about what consequences may flow from how we talk politics. This Article analyzes the emerging data about the nature, causes, and consequences of incivility in modern political discourse. As we explain, the currently available empirical evidence is inconclusive on many specific points. However, it does suggest that some types of incivility, in certain contexts, may cause harm to democratic engagement and governance. At the same time, empirical evidence * Regents' Professor and Milton 0. Riepe Chair in Constitutional Law, University of Arizona. ** Professor of Sociology, Affiliated Professor of Law, and 2010-2011 Earl H. Carroll Magellan Circle Fellow, University of Arizona; Research Director, National Institute for Civil Discourse. Our thanks go to Kirk Emerson, Bernard Harcourt, Suzi Dovi, and Houston Smit for excellent feedback, and to Alexis Danneman, Raphael Avraham, Corey Mantei, and Brad Honigman of the Arizona Law Review for their thoughtful editorial input.