The First Amendment of the United States Constitution protects individuals from laws "...abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press". Among its rationales is the notion that a democratic country must be informed in order to be fully functional and participatory. Additionally, others argue that in a marketplace of ideas, the truth will emerge from the competition of ideas in free, transparent public discourse. The "marketplace of ideas" theory concludes that ideas and ideologies will be culled according to their superiority or inferiority and widespread acceptance among the population. Why, then, are there exceptions to First Amendment protection to materials that are considered obscene?