To be obscene, a work must fail the Miller test, which determines if it has any "serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value." Decided June 21, 1973 (argued 1972). Opinion of the Court: Warren E. Burger → go there Dissenting: Douglas, Brennan. Applied: the First Amendment → go there Topic: Freedom of speech and of the press. Miller v. California, 413 U.S. 15 (1973), is a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court clarifying the legal definition of obscenity. The ruling was the origin of the three-part judicial test for determining obscene media content that can be banned by government authorities, which is now known as the Miller test. Wiki link