--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is within the last quarter century or…" description: "\"It is within the last quarter century or thirty years. And a lot of that law has turned out to be very, very protective of the press and the public's r..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe0/floyd-abrams-17028_century_it-is-within-the-last-quarter-century-or_2955822.png" --- # It is within the last quarter century or thirty years. And… ![“It is within the last quarter century or thirty years. And a lot of that law has turned out to be very, very protective of the press and the public's right to know.” quote by Floyd Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe0/floyd-abrams-17028_century_it-is-within-the-last-quarter-century-or_2955822.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe0/floyd-abrams-17028_century_it-is-within-the-last-quarter-century-or_2955822.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe0/floyd-abrams-17028_century_it-is-within-the-last-quarter-century-or_2955822.png) > “It is within the last quarter century or thirty years. And a lot of that law has turned out to be very, very protective of the press and the public's right to know.” [Floyd Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-abrams/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Legal protections for press safeguard public knowledge and accountability **In simple terms:** Press freedom protects public right to know Key Takeaway Defend press freedoms Themes law media public right accountability transparency Mood serious reflective Type legal political When to use this quote - Journalism - government oversight - whistleblowing - public advocacy Key Concepts First Amendment public interest media law Questions to Reflect On - How can we protect press freedom while ensuring security? - What responsibilities do journalists have to the public? A Different Perspective Balancing security and privacy can limit press freedom ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Journalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/journalism/) [Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law/) ## Related quotes > [The law has been perverted, and the powers of the state have become perverted along with it. The law has not only been turned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-bastiat/the-law-has-been-perverted-and-the-powers-of-the-state-have-become/) [Frederic Bastiat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-bastiat/) > [I do not believe that the people of the United States are going to take people who have been here a quarter century, who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/newt-gingrich/i-do-not-believe-that-the-people-of-the-united-states-are-going-to/) [Newt Gingrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/newt-gingrich/) > [It is hard for me to imagine retiring at 65 and spending the next quarter century not working. I expect to be working, doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-rubio/it-is-hard-for-me-to-imagine-retiring-at-65-and-spending-the-next/) [Marco Rubio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-rubio/) > [There is no - let me repeat - no example in the last quarter-century of a large, complex economy that has been successful with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-goldberg/there-is-no-let-me-repeat-no-example-in-the-last-quarter-century-of-a/) [Jonah Goldberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-goldberg/) > [I would not trade you a billion dollars for the kids I led to combat in Vietnam or in fact any of the Marines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-north/i-would-not-trade-you-a-billion-dollars-for-the-kids-i-led-to-combat/) [Oliver North](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-north/) > [The first quarter-century of your life was doubtless lived under the cloud of being too young for things, while the last quarter-century would normally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hilton/the-first-quarter-century-of-your-life-was-doubtless-lived-under-the/) [James Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hilton/) > [One of the advantages of the book's having been out there for more than a quarter century is that there's been time for people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-tobias/one-of-the-advantages-of-the-book-s-having-been-out-there-for-more/) [Andrew Tobias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-tobias/) > [So sometimes the facts are good and sometimes the facts are bad, the important thing from the point of view of a principle as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-abrams/so-sometimes-the-facts-are-good-and-sometimes-the-facts-are-bad-the/) [Floyd Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-abrams/) > [In a democracy, the public has a right to know not only what the government decides, but why and by what process.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-r-ford/in-a-democracy-the-public-has-a-right-to-know-not-only-what-the/) [Gerald R. Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-r-ford/) > [The U.S. needs legislation to protect the public's right to free speech and a free press, to protect it from the actions of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chelsea-manning/the-u-s-needs-legislation-to-protect-the-public-s-right-to-free/) [Chelsea Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chelsea-manning/) > [The government's assertion that it must be unhindered in protecting our security can camouflage the desire to increase Executive power, while the press's cry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-stengel/the-government-s-assertion-that-it-must-be-unhindered-in-protecting/) [Richard Stengel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-stengel/) > [When the public's right to know is threatened, all other public rights are threatened.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-dodd/when-the-public-s-right-to-know-is-threatened-all-other-public-rights/) [Christopher Dodd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-dodd/) > [The public are always right... but I think they've got it wrong tonight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-waterman/the-public-are-always-right-but-i-think-they-ve-got-it-wrong-tonight/) [Pete Waterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-waterman/) > [The public is often right during the trends, but wrong at both ends](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/humphrey-b-neill/the-public-is-often-right-during-the-trends-but-wrong-at-both-ends/) [Humphrey B. Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/humphrey-b-neill/) > [I think it's inevitable that some of the court's decisions will be found by a segment of the public to be not the right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-day-o-connor/i-think-it-s-inevitable-that-some-of-the-court-s-decisions-will-be/) [Sandra Day O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-day-o-connor/) ## More by Floyd Abrams > [It has something to do with the facts and the law and who the judges are. So I think lawyers sometimes exaggerate their role…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-abrams/it-has-something-to-do-with-the-facts-and-the-law-and-who-the-judges/) [Floyd Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-abrams/) > [The government understands - every government, every administration, both parties, understands - that that power, they just don't have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-abrams/the-government-understands-every-government-every-administration-both/) [Floyd Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-abrams/) > [The government would be able to go to court with respect to newspaper articles, broadcast pieces and the like that they thought were bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-abrams/the-government-would-be-able-to-go-to-court-with-respect-to-newspaper/) [Floyd Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-abrams/) > [I really do think that if we had lost that case we would really live in a country that would be really quite different.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-abrams/i-really-do-think-that-if-we-had-lost-that-case-we-would-really-live/) [Floyd Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-abrams/) > [CBS exhausted the Texas courts. They went from the trial court to the intermediate court to the highest court.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-abrams/cbs-exhausted-the-texas-courts-they-went-from-the-trial-court-to-the/) [Floyd Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-abrams/) > [When I began we did not really have a lot of First Amendment law. It is really surprising to think of it this way,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-abrams/when-i-began-we-did-not-really-have-a-lot-of-first-amendment-law-it/) [Floyd Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-abrams/) > [It just seems to be a human trait to want to protect the speech of people with whom we agree. For the First Amendment,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-abrams/it-just-seems-to-be-a-human-trait-to-want-to-protect-the-speech-of/) [Floyd Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-abrams/) > [My role in it was not as central as it was in some of the later cases considering I was younger then and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-abrams/my-role-in-it-was-not-as-central-as-it-was-in-some-of-the-later-cases/) [Floyd Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-abrams/) > [Were this not Texas, were there not a state where there were no protections at all and where the law was clear on that,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-abrams/were-this-not-texas-were-there-not-a-state-where-there-were-no/) [Floyd Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-abrams/) > [I thought that one of the things that we were losing sight of is the basic reasons that we do protect free speech and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-abrams/i-thought-that-one-of-the-things-that-we-were-losing-sight-of-is-the/) [Floyd Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-abrams/) > [I am really impressed by lawyers who write books and tell us that they never lost a case. Most lawyers who have never lost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-abrams/i-am-really-impressed-by-lawyers-who-write-books-and-tell-us-that/) [Floyd Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-abrams/) > [I really try at least to come back and answer the question as to whether that was really the best way to do that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-abrams/i-really-try-at-least-to-come-back-and-answer-the-question-as-to/) [Floyd Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-abrams/) > [I think we have some serious problems now, but, if you look back over the last thirty or forty years that my book deals…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-abrams/i-think-we-have-some-serious-problems-now-but-if-you-look-back-over/) [Floyd Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-abrams/) > [I try to do that in this book without preaching - to try to do as you just said that you really have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-abrams/i-try-to-do-that-in-this-book-without-preaching-to-try-to-do-as-you/) [Floyd Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-abrams/) > [I would say that the Pentagon Papers case of 1971 - in which the government tried to block the 'The New York Times' and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-abrams/i-would-say-that-the-pentagon-papers-case-of-1971-in-which-the/) [Floyd Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-abrams/) [Explore all 38 Floyd Abrams quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-abrams/) ## More Century quotes > [I know always that I am an outsider; a stranger in this century and among those who are still men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-know-always-that-i-am-an-outsider-a-stranger-in-this-century-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [ \[The Dalai Lama\] told me some years ago, "I've made every concession to China, and I've been as open and tolerant as I could,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/the-dalai-lama-told-me-some-years-ago-i-ve-made-every-concession-to/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [Anybody looking for a quiet life has picked the wrong century to born in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/anybody-looking-for-a-quiet-life-has-picked-the-wrong-century-to-born/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The poetry from the eighteenth century was prose; the prose from the seventeenth century was poetry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hare/the-poetry-from-the-eighteenth-century-was-prose-the-prose-from-the/) [David Hare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hare/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Talented people can predict with great accuracy what's about to happen just a tiny bit ahead of their competitors. It might be two seconds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-maney/talented-people-can-predict-with-great-accuracy-what-s-about-to/) [Kevin Maney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-maney/) > [The world's history is a divine poem, of which the history of every nation is a canto, and every man a word. Its strains…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/the-world-s-history-is-a-divine-poem-of-which-the-history-of-every/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [The nineteenth century lynching mob cuts off ears, toes, and fingers, strips off flesh, and distributes portions of the body as souvenirs among the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ida-b-wells/the-nineteenth-century-lynching-mob-cuts-off-ears-toes-and-fingers/) [Ida B. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ida-b-wells/) > [At no time in the past century has public distrust of the government been so broadly distributed across the political spectrum, as it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-zimmermann/at-no-time-in-the-past-century-has-public-distrust-of-the-government/) [Phil Zimmermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-zimmermann/) > [While husbands and lovers in the stories are of all kinds, ranging from sympathetic to disgusting, women are invariably deceivers: inconstant, unscrupulous, quarrelsome, querulous,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-tuchman/while-husbands-and-lovers-in-the-stories-are-of-all-kinds-ranging/) [Barbara Tuchman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-tuchman/) > [The young people today are the 21st century.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-scorsese/the-young-people-today-are-the-21st-century/) [Martin Scorsese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-scorsese/) > [The wisdom of our actions in the first three years of peace will determine the course of world history for half a century.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-a-wallace/the-wisdom-of-our-actions-in-the-first-three-years-of-peace-will/) [Henry A. Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-a-wallace/) > [For me, the melancholy of the late XXth Century is walking late at night by the Mont Blanc pen store and seeing these things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/for-me-the-melancholy-of-the-late-xxth-century-is-walking-late-at/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [In a general way, the literature of the twentieth century is essentially psychological; and psychology consists of describing states of the soul by displaying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-weil/in-a-general-way-the-literature-of-the-twentieth-century-is/) [Simone Weil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-weil/) > [Consequently, citizen legislators, rotating back to their communities after a short period of public service—considered an indispensable and routine characteristic and design of representative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/consequently-citizen-legislators-rotating-back-to-their-communities/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) Browse all 5,406 Century quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It is within the last quarter century or thirty years. And a lot of that law has turned out to be very, very protective of the press and the public's right to know.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Floyd Abrams" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-abrams/it-is-within-the-last-quarter-century-or-thirty-years-and-a-lot-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Century" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-abrams/it-is-within-the-last-quarter-century-or-thirty-years-and-a-lot-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe0/floyd-abrams-17028_century_it-is-within-the-last-quarter-century-or_2955822.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe0/floyd-abrams-17028_century_it-is-within-the-last-quarter-century-or_2955822.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe0/floyd-abrams-17028_century_it-is-within-the-last-quarter-century-or_2955822.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It is within the last quarter century or thirty years. 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