The right to television

Television is many things to people in America. It is entertainment, it is a source of news and information, and it is a way for companies to reach buyers through advertising.

But is it a right? That question got national attention in a court case in New York City in 2002.

In that case, a man being punished for a crime said his rights had been violated because a judge took away television as part of his sentence.

Banning TV violates the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, the man’s lawyer said, because it amounts to limiting his freedom of speech and freedom of the press. Others suggested it might also be a “cruel and unusual punishment,” which would violate the Constitution’s Eighth Amendment.

Most kids have had parents take away television privileges as a form of punishment. But the New York case was the first time somebody argued that taking away television would violate rights guaranteed in the first 10 amendments to the Constitution, which form America’s Bill of Rights.

Quiet time

The case in New York involved a man named Edward Bello, who had been in trouble with the law for years but had never gone to jail. Late in 2001, he pleaded guilty to charging more than $26,000 on stolen credit cards.

As punishment, U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein sentenced him to 10 months of “house arrest.” Bello could live at home and still go to work — but little else. And he could not watch TV, because the judge wanted Bello to have quiet time “to reflect on the ways of his life, and the harm that he has brought to his family.”

At first, Bello agreed. But then his lawyers said the sentence was a hardship on Bello, his wife and his two teenage daughters — and a violation of Bello’s rights.

TV’S huge role

The Bello case gave new attention to the enormous role of television in American life.

According to recent studies, more than 98% of U.S. homes have at least one television, and more than 40% have three or more. The TV is turned on in an average of U.S. homes for 7 hours and 40 minutes a day. The average American watches for more than four hours every day.

But is watching TV a right, as important as the freedom of speech, freedom of the press and the right to a fair trial?

When Bello appealed his sentence, he won the battle but lost the war. The U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Judge Hellerstein had exceeded his authority by barring TV as a way to get Bello to think about his actions and ordered the judge to come up with a new sentence. Given that opportunity, the judge sentenced Bello to 15 months in prison.