Obscenity
Sexually explicit material that meets the three-part Miller test and lacks serious artistic, literary, political, or scientific value, which falls outside First Amendment protection.
Obscenity is one of the recognized categories of unprotected speech under the First Amendment. The Miller test (1973) defines obscenity as material that:
1. The average person, applying contemporary community standards, would find appeals to the prurient interest 2. Depicts or describes sexual conduct in a patently offensive way 3. Lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value
All three prongs must be satisfied for material to be unprotected obscenity. The 'serious value' prong (the SLAPS test) applies a national standard — not a local community standard — because of the risk that minority tastes in literature and art would be suppressed in conservative communities.
Obscenity is rarely prosecuted today. The practical availability of sexually explicit material online, the difficulty of satisfying all three Miller prongs, and prosecutorial priorities have made obscenity law a relatively dormant area.
Distinct from obscenity: Child sexual abuse material (CSAM) is categorically unprotected regardless of artistic merit. Indecent speech (non-obscene sexually explicit content) can be regulated in broadcast media due to the captive audience rationale but is generally protected in other media.