Publishing, the Rules of the Trade

Zoom inZoom inZoom inZoom in
Zoom outZoom outZoom outZoom out
Go homeGo homeGo homeGo home
Toggle full pageToggle full pageToggle full pageToggle full page
Unable to open [object Object]: Error loading image at /bpi_loi-edition/commun/images/LibertePresse1.jpg

Law of July 29, 1881 on the freedom of the press

Journal officiel de la République française, July 30, 1881, Gallica.bnf.fr

Having stated that ‘printing and bookselling are free’, the articles of this law go on to limit that freedom. In this context, defamation and insult can be grounds for a condemnation to pay fines, pay damages, rectify the incriminated passages or even authorise seizure. This law also mentions insult to the Head of State, the police, the army and the judiciary, as well as written incitement to ‘theft, murder, looting and arson.’ The law of 1881 gives the book a specific status (in relation to periodicals) which is then relativized by what comes after. Certain articles specify the areas of application of the law of 1881. In 1972, one of them concerned racism, and in 1987, another dealt with apologies for war crimes.