Arkansas Educational Television Commission v. Ralph P. Forbes
523 U.S. 666 · Decided May 18, 1998 · Supreme Court of the United States
Record summary. This page is generated from the Supreme Court Database’s coded data about the case. It describes who decided what, not the Court’s reasoning. Read the opinion itself before relying on it. Not legal advice.
At a glance
Arkansas Educational Television Commission v. Ralph P. Forbes was decided on May 18, 1998 by a vote of 6–3. The Court reversed the lower court's decision. Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote the opinion of the Court. SCDB classifies its main issue as “First Amendment, miscellaneous” in the First Amendment area.
Read the opinion
Case details
- Citations
- 523 U.S. 666 · 118 S. Ct. 1633 · 140 L. Ed. 2d 875 · 1998 U.S. LEXIS 3102
- Docket number
- 96-779
- Decided
- May 18, 1998
- Argued
- October 8, 1997
- Court era
- Rehnquist Court
- Decision type
- Opinion of the Court (orally argued)
- Disposition
- Reversed
- Outcome for petitioner
- The petitioning party received a favorable disposition
- Vote
- 6–3
- Majority opinion
- Anthony M. Kennedy
- Opinion assigned by
- William H. Rehnquist
- How the case arrived
- Certiorari
- Issue (SCDB)
- First Amendment, miscellaneous
- Issue area
- First Amendment
- Legal provision
- First Amendment (speech, press, and assembly)
- Type of law
- Constitutional amendment
- Decision direction (SCDB)
- Conservative what this means
How the Justices voted
| Justice | Vote | Separate writing |
|---|---|---|
| Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist | Majority | |
| Justice John Paul Stevens | Dissent | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Majority | |
| Justice Antonin Scalia | Majority | |
| Justice Anthony M. Kennedy | Majority | Wrote an opinion |
| Justice David H. Souter | Dissent | |
| Justice Clarence Thomas | Majority | |
| Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Dissent | |
| Justice Stephen G. Breyer | Majority |
Full case caption
Arkansas Educational Television Commission v. Ralph P. Forbes
SCDB identifiers: case 1997-065, docket 1997-065-01.
Related decisions
Other cases on “First Amendment, miscellaneous”
- National Endowment for the Arts v. Karen Finley
- Victoria Buckley v. American Constitutional Law Foundation, Inc.Law held unconstitutional
- Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. v. Federal Communications Commission
- Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System v. Scott Harold Southworth
- Bd. of County Comm'rs v. Umbehr
- O'Hare Truck Service v. City of Northlake
Cases on the same legal provision: First Amendment (speech, press, and assembly)
- Janet Reno v. American Civil Liberties UnionLaw held unconstitutional
- Dan Glickman v. Wileman Brothers & Elliott, Inc.
- Greater New Orleans Broadcasting Association, Inc., Etc. v. United StatesLaw held unconstitutional
- Paul Schenck and Dwight Saunders v. Pro-Choice Network of Western New York
- Los Angeles Police Department v. United Reporting Publishing Corporation
- Jeremiah W. (Jay) Nixon v. Shrink Missouri Government Pac
Same Term, same area (First Amendment)
Source: Supreme Court Database, 2026 Release 01 (data file dated September 8, 2026). Imported into CaseTrail November 5, 2026. Coverage: decisions from the 1946 through 2025 Terms. Methodology · Report an error