[dukeyukey]

Worth pointing out the modern American conception of freedom of speech is super recent. It only really became a thing in the 1970s. Before then, restrictions on porn, film, even written materials on controversial subjects like abortion could and were regulated.

[userbinator]

The 1st Amendment was over 200 years ago, basically a few decades after the US was founded. There was always a rather large libertarian faction.

[dukeyukey]

The 1st Amendment is old, but the way it's applied today is quite radical compared to how it was applied for most of American history. The US being so free speech isn't much older than the median American is.