Parodies of public figures, including those intended to cause emotional distress, are protected by the First Amendment. Decided February 24, 1988 (argued December 2, 1987). Opinion of the Court: William Rehnquist → go there Applied: the First Amendment → go there Applied: the Fourteenth Amendment → go there Topic: Freedom of speech and of the press. Hustler Magazine, Inc. v. Falwell, 485 U.S. 46 (1988), is a landmark decision by the Supreme Court of the United States in which the Court held that parodies of public figures, even those intending to cause emotional distress, are protected by the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. Wiki link