What is an Ag-Gag bill and why is it Anti-American?

An ag-gag bill or anti-whistleblower bill is, as defined by the Humane Society of the United States is as follows;
"Anti-whistleblower bills effectively block anyone from exposing animal cruelty, food-safety issues, poor working conditions, and more, by way of the following; Banning taking a photo or video of a factory farm without permission, essentially making it a crime for an investigator to get work at a factory farm, or renquiring mandatory reporting with impossibly short time lines so that no pattern of abuse can be documented."
I am a freedom loving American, who, in general would like smaller government and the freedom to live my life without the government controlling all that I do and all that I say.  The government should be there to help the truly defenseless, provide infrastructure and to protect us from outside threats.  I believe that ag-gag legislation ( a phrase coined by Mark Bittman an American cook book author and journalist) really goes against our American roots and quite frankly against my conservative values.  Not only do these bills condone cruelty, they inhibit freedom of speech. How is America, as a nation, better served by telling it's people not to stand up for what is right? Should we be telling our citizens to turn a blind eye to blatant cruelty? And to those who support this type of abuse, because they are just livestock, you are telling me that you will attempt to silence those who disagree?  That is not American, it is, if I dare say, Anti-American.  I will admit, it really aggravates me when someone bashes former President George W. Bush, but, guess what, that is there right as an American! Freedom of speech is a fundamental right in our amazing nation. This amazing gift from our founding fathers is protected by the First Amendment of the Constitution and it is the cornerstone of many of our other rights. Lets not be idiots and legislate that away bit by bit.  This type of legislation really must be defeated and in order for that to happen, we need to stand united, as Americans. This is not a left and right issue.  This is an American issue.  Know where your food comes from and never ever let anyone take away your right to speak out!