censorship vs. freedom of speech

Once I had plowed my way through the forty some odd pages in Milton's Areopagitica saved in my Word document, things were beginning to make some sense.  The basic idea he was getting at was that no one man should ever be allowed to decide for the public what they can and cannot see or hear.  Not to say that people who take risks in the media or the press aren't subject to scrutiny or even the law.  It's just that on the front end, everyone should have the freedom to choose for themselves what to expose themselves to, just as those putting the information out their have freedom of speech and of the press.  As he's beginning to wrap up, Milton says this on the matter:

"And as for regulating the press, let no man think to have the honour of advising ye better than yourselves have done in that order published next before this, 'that no book be printed, unless the printer's and the author's name, or at least the printer's, be registered.' "

Here he even suggests that due credit be given, but that no control be executed to keep information from certain groups or what have you.  He thinks as I do that no man has that much authority over another that they can dictate what should or should not be viewed, heard or experienced.  He goes on, as he concludes to point a finger at the government who are the first to cover their tracks.  This is the case for any body, company, or organization that rules over another.  Milton says this:

"This I know, that errors in a good government and in a bad are equally almost incident; for what magistrate may not be misinformed, and much the sooner, if liberty of printing be reduced to the power of a few?"

Here he's trying to get across even further that even in the case of the government, censorship shouldn't be tolerated, allowing a few to make the choice for the whole.  A good example of this and how it applies today can be found in a re-airing of an episode of Saturday Night Live.  It originally aired last March containing a biting skit that directly poked fun at the corporate ownership of TV networks.  The bit is modeled after Schoolhouse Rock and its song lyrics are anything but child-like with phrases like:

"It's a media-opoly. A media-opoly The whole media's controlled by a few corporations Thanks to deregulation by the FCC"

"They can give you lots of cancer That can hurt your body But on network TV You'll rarely hear anything bad about the nuclear industry Like when Westinghouse was sued for fraud? Which time? When GE made defective bolts it was an unreported crime Or when it was boycotted for operating nuclear bomb plants just to squeeze a dime..."

"I hear GE made the bullets that shot JFK"

So it's no shock that when this whole episode re-aired in June, this cute little skit was mysteriously cut from the show, end of story.  This is a prime example of a corporate giant censoring a skit that implies they control the media...I don't think Milton would like this sort of behavior, no matter what level it's on. 

here's the link to the article about it. I'd include the link to the video of the skit, but would you believe I couldn't find it?

http://find.galegroup.com.candycorn.lipscomb.edu/ips/retrieve.do?contentSet=IAC-Documents&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&qrySerId=Locale%28en%2C%2C%29%3AFQE%3D%28ke%2CNone%2C19%29censoring+the+media%24&sgHitCountType=None&inPS=true&sort=DateDescend&searchType=BasicSearchForm&tabID=T003&prodId=IPS&searchId=R1&currentPosition=5&userGroupName=tel_a_beaman&docId=A20913887&docType=IAC&contentSet=IAC-Documents