Sign Up Account Profile Log Out

Newsletters Morning Report 12:30 Report Evening Report Business Defense Health Care Technology Newsletter Energy & Environment Whole Hog Politics The Gavel The Movement

Technology Newsletter

NEWS Senate House Administration Courts Future America Media Campaign News Education In The Know Latino LGBTQ DC News Race & Politics State Watch Print Edition People in the News

POLICY Defense Health Care Energy & Environment Technology Transportation International Cybersecurity National Security Space Sustainability

BUSINESS Budget Taxes Personal Finance Lobbying

OPINION Columnists Congress Blog All Contributors Opinions – Campaign Opinions – Civil Rights Opinions – Criminal Justice Opinions – Cybersecurity Opinions – Education Opinions – Energy and Environment Opinions – Finance Opinions – Healthcare Opinions – Immigration Opinions – International Opinions – Judiciary Opinions – National Security Opinions – Technology Opinions – White House Submit Opinion Content

All Contributors Opinions – Campaign Opinions – Civil Rights Opinions – Criminal Justice Opinions – Cybersecurity Opinions – Education Opinions – Energy and Environment Opinions – Finance Opinions – Healthcare Opinions – Immigration Opinions – International Opinions – Judiciary Opinions – National Security Opinions – Technology Opinions – White House

Opinions – Civil Rights

Opinions – Criminal Justice

Opinions – Cybersecurity

Opinions – Energy and Environment

Opinions – Healthcare

Opinions – Immigration

Opinions – International

Opinions – National Security

Opinions – Technology

Opinions – White House

Submit Opinion Content

EVENTS Upcoming Events About

Sign Up Account Profile Log Out

Trump State of the Union

State of the Union Takeaways

SOTU stand-out moments

Content from Google Cloud

Opinion Trump can still do an end run around the Supreme Court on tariffs Opinions - White House | 3 minutes ago

Most in new poll say vaccines are safe, school mandates are warranted Health Care | 7 minutes ago

NY governor calls for $13.5B in tariff refunds State Watch | 9 minutes ago

Nobel Prize-winning Columbia neuroscientist resigns over Epstein ties Education | 22 minutes ago

Opinion The most patriotic thing broadcasters can do for America’s 250th Opinions - Civil Rights | 33 minutes ago

Watch live: Casey Means, Trump’s pick for surgeon general, faces Senate confirmation hearing Health Care | 35 minutes ago

Pelosi explains white buttons at State of the Union address House | 38 minutes ago

Democrats demand special counsel investigation of Bondi, accusing her of perjury  House | 1 hour ago

The most patriotic thing broadcasters can do for America’s 250th

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr announced his “Pledge America Campaign” last week, urging broadcasters to air “patriotic, pro-America programming” in celebration of America’s 250th birthday this July 4. Among his suggestions: starting each broadcast day with “The Star-Spangled Banner” or the Pledge of Allegiance.

I have a better idea.

Before the anthem plays, before a single note of John Philip Sousa is aired, broadcasters should put 45 words on the screen — the words of the First Amendment. It would be the most patriotic thing they could do for America’s Semiquincentennial, and perhaps the most necessary.

This isn’t a new notion for me. I’ve previously proposed that Major League Baseball add a recital of the First Amendment before “The Star-Spangled Banner” at every game. Flash those forty-five words on the stadium Jumbotron, let the crowd read them together, and then sing the anthem with a deeper understanding of what “the land of the free” actually means.

I have also argued that movie theaters should display the First Amendment on screen before the lights dim and the coming attractions roll — a brief, powerful civics lesson for Americans of all ages assembled in their local cinemas.

The logic is straightforward. These are places where Americans gather as Americans, not as partisans. A ballpark on opening day, a packed movie theater on a Friday night, a living room tuned to the local morning news — these are spaces where the First Amendment can transcend the political divisions that Carr himself says he wants to bridge.

And he is right that civics education is in rapid decline. Survey after survey confirms that alarming numbers of Americans, especially younger ones, cannot identify the freedoms the First Amendment protects.

When less than half of high school students in a Knight Foundation survey supported freedom of speech when it involves expression that is “offensive,” the problem is not a shortage of patriotic programming. The problem is that too many Americans have never meaningfully engaged with the bedrock constitutional principle that makes all other freedoms possible.

Carr invoked “Schoolhouse Rock!” as a model, and something is charming about that. But nostalgia for Saturday morning cartoons won’t address the deeper challenge. What would be more meaningful is making the First Amendment itself more visible and present in American daily life — on broadcast airwaves, yes, but also in stadiums, cinemas, and every other place where we come together as a national community.

Here is where the opportunity gets more complicated. Celebrating America’s free expression tradition requires more than putting patriotic programming on the air — it also means ensuring that the robust, sometimes uncomfortable speech the Founders prized remains equally welcome on those same airwaves. A campaign to honor the nation’s founding principles is most credible when it embraces all of what the First Amendment protects, not just the parts that feel comfortable.

The First Amendment is not a partisan document. It serves all Americans — left, right and center. 

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” Those forty-five words don’t belong to any administration, any party, or any campaign. They belong to all of us.

So yes, Chairman Carr, let’s celebrate America’s 250th. Let’s ask broadcasters to serve the public interest by educating their audiences about what makes this country extraordinary. But let’s start with the single greatest contribution America has made to human liberty.

Put the First Amendment on the air. Put it on the Jumbotron. Put it on the silver screen. And then let it do what it has always done — remind every American that free expression is not a threat to our democracy. It is our democracy.

Stuart N. Brotman is Digital Media Laureate and Distinguished Senior Fellow at The Media Institute. A former Visiting Professor of Entertainment and Media Law at Harvard Law School, he is the author of “Free Expression Under Fire: Defending Free Speech and Free Press Across the Political Spectrum.”

Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

More Opinions - Civil Rights News

Durbin whistleblowers accuse Patel of jet usage, decision-making that hindered ...

Gorsuch takes aim at fellow Supreme Court justices in tariff decision

Five takeaways from President Trump’s State of the Union address

Platner holds double-digit lead on Mills, Collins in Maine Senate race: Poll

Wall Street Journal: ‘Smart play’ would have been for Trump to forgo, pause ...

Cornyn: Democrat winning Senate race in Texas would be ‘first crack in the ...

5 stand-out moments from Trump’s State of the Union address

Hegseth says he’ll order random pizzas to throw off monitoring app

End, don’t mend, the prime-time State of the Union address 

Pennsylvania Democrats win state House special elections, keeping majority ...

Trump’s delusional State of the Union address 

Pam Bondi thought grand jurors were stupid. They showed her a thing or two.

Senate Democrats emerge from secret Iran briefing warning of ...

Live updates: Trump delivers record-setting State of the Union speech

Bessent on new Trump retirement plan: ‘We can do it through reconciliation’

Democrats demand special counsel investigation of Bondi, accusing her of ...

Clashes with Democrats dominate Trump’s State of the Union

FCC got more complaints about Jimmy Kimmel’s suspension than about his ...

The Hill Podcasts – Morning Report

2024 Election Results

2024 Election Forecast

Regulation - Administration

Energy & Environment Video Clips

Health Care Video Clips

Technology Video Clips

Transportation Video Clips

International Video Clips

Cybersecurity Video Clips

National Security Video Clips

Contributors to The Hill

Submit Opinion Content

PRIVACY POLICY 09/30/2025

Advertise with Nexstar

Journalistic Integrity

THE HILL 400 N CAPITOL STREET NW, SUITE 650 WASHINGTON DC 20002

© 1998 - 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. | All Rights Reserved.

Provided by Nexstar Media Group, Inc.

Sign in to create a free account. No password needed.

By clicking on any of the sign up options below, you confirm that you have read and agree to our Terms of Use, which includes a jury trial waiver and class action waiver, and that you have read our Privacy Policy detailing our collection, use and sharing of your personal information.

By clicking on any of the sign up options below, you confirm that you have read and agree to our Terms of Use, which includes a jury trial waiver and class action waiver, and that you have read our Privacy Policy detailing our collection, use and sharing of your personal information.

The Hill is provided by Nexstar Media Group, Inc., and uses the My Nexstar sign-in, which works across our media network.

Learn more at nexstar.tv/privacy-policy.

The Hill is provided by Nexstar Media Group, Inc., and uses the My Nexstar sign-in, which works across our media network.

Nexstar Media Group, Inc. is a leading, diversified media company that produces and distributes engaging local and national news, sports, and entertainment content across its television and digital platforms. The My Nexstar sign-in works across the Nexstar network—including The CW, NewsNation, The Hill, and more. Learn more at nexstar.tv/privacy-policy.

Provided by Nexstar Media Group, Inc.

Check your email inbox

Provided by Nexstar Media Group, Inc.

Thanks for registering!

Provided by Nexstar Media Group, Inc.

Are you sure you want to log out?

© The Hill