Patterns of censorship around the world

From "political correctness" on U.S. college campuses to political imprisonment of writers in Latin America, censorship remains a pervasive and persistent political force in nations the world over. This collection of essays explores the many faces of censorship, placing them in a theoretical and comparative context. The contributors - who include lawyers, scholars, and an author who has chosen to remain anonymous for fear of government reprisals - show how censorship is used in totalitarian regimes to promote an official ideology and exert party control, in authoritarian regimes to restrict or eliminate civil liberties, and in liberal democracies to limit the freedom of expression. Whether accomplished through torture and execution of dissidents or more subtly through laws, regulations, or tacit threats, there is no doubt that censorship is a potent instrument of power and a political tool that both affects and is affected by the national and international political climate. Patterns of Censorship Arnund the World presents a clear and sobering picture of the ways in which one of our most fundamental human rights is curbed, regulated, and in some cases, abolished.