In Ashcroft v. Free Speech Coalition, the challenge to CPPA primarily invoked which constitutional amendment?

• A. Fourth Amendment
• B. First Amendment
• C. Eighth Amendment
• D. Tenth Amendment

Answer: (B)

First Amendment protections for speech are at the heart of this issue. Ashcroft v. Free Speech Coalition tested whether the CPPA’s restrictions on child pornography ran afoul of free speech guarantees. The Court struck down the provision that criminalized “virtual” child pornography—depictions that appear to involve minors but do not use real children—because that material, if not obscene, is protected by the First Amendment. The ruling shows that while the government may prohibit actual child exploitation and obscene material, it cannot ban non-obscene speech simply to prevent potential harm. The other amendments listed concern different constitutional protections (unreasonable searches and seizures, cruel and unusual punishment, and states’ rights), which were not the basis of the challenge here.