U.K. Bans Possession of Porn Depicting Choking, Suffocation, or Pretend Incest
Violators could face years in prison.
Censorship
The U.K.'s Online Safety Act Has Been a Failure. Regulators Want To Broaden It Anyway.
A new report reveals more shortcomings of the U.K.’s Online Safety Act.
Worst Nathan for You–Style Scheme Ever? A Polling Company Claimed Its Fake Polls Were a Social Experiment.
Information regulation is not the way to stop online hoaxes. But that doesn’t mean we should stop searching for the truth.
X Bans Former Libertarian Party Affiliate—After the State Requests It
Gov. Kelly Ayotte urged X to kick out the Libertarian Party's former New Hampshire affiliate. The next day, the account was suspended.
Aaron Sorkin's New Anti-Facebook Movie Is a Stunning Act of Self-Satisfied Cowardice
This smug, simplistic film blames Facebook for all that's wrong with the world, ignoring the messy reality of humans and politics.
Trump Has Been Trampling Free Speech for More Than 40 Years—and It Keeps Getting Worse
The president stands out from his modern predecessors by openly displaying his contempt for the First Amendment.
A Missouri School District Censored a Parent's Negative Facebook Emoji Because It Was 'Upsetting'
Annie Palmer was banned from the district's Facebook page for expressing her displeasure at the hiring of a new elementary school principal.
Whistleblower Frances Haugen Trashes Facebook's Flawed Fact-Checkers
Frances Haugen, the woman whose Facebook revelations inspired The Social Reckoning, argues that the real danger of social media isn’t bad speech—it’s the way the platforms are designed.
TikTok's $100 Million Settlement With Alabama Is No Win for the Public
TikTok must implement several new "safety" features, including time limits for kids and strict age-verification measures.
Trump's New Ads Look Like Campaign Spots. Taxpayers Are Paying for Them.
With midterm voting underway, the distinction between public service announcements and campaign ads blurs.
Texas Wants Free Speech on Campus—With Exceptions
Charlie Kirk’s death put campus censorship back in the spotlight. In Texas, FIRE found plenty of it—much of it was from the right.
Trump Feuds With Kaitlin Collins After CNN Media Ban
Trump’s latest media fight isn’t just about CNN and MSNOW—it’s about who gets access to him.
The E.U. Just Proposed Its Most Sweeping Social Media Restriction to Date
The KIDS Act could age-gate the internet for hundreds of millions of users.
The 'Stop Nick Shirley Act': Yet Another Anti-Doxxing Law That Chills Free Speech
A lawsuit argues that a recently passed law to protect immigration service providers in California is "overbroad and vague."
This California Social Media Law is a Privacy and Free Speech 'Nightmare'
California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed more than a dozen online safety and tech regulation bills into law this week.
Professor Investigated for Mocking a University 'Land Acknowledgment' Gets a $600,000 Settlement
The agreement follows a 9th Circuit ruling that the University of Washington violated Stuart Reges' First Amendment rights by treating his dissent as intolerable "disruption."
Foreign Regulators Are Trying To Censor Americans Online. A Bill Would Ensure Those Demands Are Unenforceable.
The proposed GRANITE Act looks to shield U.S. companies from foreign censorship orders.
Trump Wants the FCC To Punish His Enemies
Plus: the escalating war with Iran, Meta's $17 billion settlement, and Milo Yiannopoulos gets deported.
What Craigslist and Backpage Can Tell Us About the Meta Settlement
It doesn't matter if you're right. If you don't cave, the government might stop at nothing to destroy you.
Brendan Carr's Vendetta Against ABC Conflates the 'Public Interest' With Trump's Personal Grievances
The FCC chairman is punishing the network for news coverage and programming decisions that offend the president.
Ibram X. Kendi Is Wrong About Jason Arday
Are the media responsible for the demise of a famous black professor at the University of Cambridge?
As France Pauses Social Media Ban, American Lawmakers Race To Restrict the Internet
France's top court ruled that a social media ban for under-15s would infringe on free expression and privacy.
A Major 'Online Safety' Bill Cleared a Senate Committee. More Crackdowns on Internet Freedom Could Be Coming.
The Senate Commerce committee advanced four bills related to online and AI safety in the name of protecting children.
A New Jersey News Outlet Asks the Courts To Stop a Judge's Censorship
The judge concluded that a high school student's privacy interests trumped freedom of the press.
RIP Lou Koller, a Hardcore Punk Hero and Free Speech Champion
Remembering the lead singer for the iconic band Sick of It All
Brendan Carr Says ABC's Refusal To Air a Trump Speech Could Affect Renewal of Its Broadcast Licenses
The FCC chairman thinks the "public interest" standard is a license to interfere with freedom of the press.
France Passes Social Media Ban for Under-15s, Leading Europe's Crackdown on Internet Freedom
French President Emmanuel Macron has advocated for social media bans before. Now, he's gotten his wish before leaving office.
A New Jersey Judge Defies the First Amendment by Censoring News Coverage of a High School Lockdown
The judge contradicted Supreme Court precedents by ruling that a student's "privacy interests" trumped "the severe constitutional presumption" against prior restraints.
Before the NSA Honored Historian David Kahn, the FBI Investigated Him
Newly declassified files reveal that J. Edgar Hoover wanted to prosecute the NSA’s future scholar in residence for collecting cryptography manuals.
Pew Poll: 56% of U.S. Adults Support Social Media Ban for Everyone Under 16
The anti-social media crusaders have popular support. That should worry online freedom advocates.
In Europe, Just Reposting Russian Propaganda Can Land a Blogger in Jail
Don't assume this couldn't happen in America too.
Democrats' First 'Project 2029' Proposal: More Government Control Over Social Media
Semafor reported on Project 2029’s "Kids Over Clicks" proposal, which outlines Democrats' plans to regulate social media and AI companies.
ICE Warns Syracuse Poll Worker To Delete a Political Instagram Post
Federal law can punish true threats, and doxing intended to facilitate violence. But this woman simply named a government agent, which is not a crime.
You Can Root for Iran at the World Cup Without Rooting for the Iranian Regime
Plus: the worst rule at the World Cup, and the worst person in golf?
England Fans Warned Not To Chant 'Keir Starmer's a Wanker' at World Cup
FIFA can restrict political messaging inside its stadiums, but there is no stopping English football fans from mocking their prime minister elsewhere.
Bipartisan JAWBONE Act Targets Government Censorship Threats
Government agencies would have to report communications and could be sued for bullying.
'Unmasking, Naming, and Shaming': This Academic Freedom Group Is Pushing for Campus Censorship
Public records obtained by City Journal show the Center for the Defense of Academic Freedom has taken a bizarrely censorial approach to its mission.
Two Senators Offer a Bipartisan Solution to Censorship by Proxy
The JAWBONE Act would let Americans sue government officials who try to restrict their speech by pressuring social media platforms, broadcasters, or AI companies.
Nude Shrek Text to Ohio State Senator Reportedly Lands Blogger in Jail
Free speech experts say the “Shrext” is protected by the First Amendment.
Shame on the U.K. for Censoring Hasan Piker and Cenk Uygur
"This ban is completely unfounded and must be reversed," writes Shabbos Kestenbaum.
The FCC Wants Warning Labels for Shows With 'Transgender' Content
But free speech advocates are pushing back.
Trump Loves Accusing Critics of Treason. U.S. Law Makes That Charge Hard To Prove—for Good Reason.
The president’s habitual attempts to criminalize dissent hark back to tyrants of yore.
Does Reporting Bad News About the Iran War Make You a Foreign Agent?
The Trump administration invokes the notoriously vague FARA to threaten a critic.
Review: A Victim of Chinese Authoritarianism Explains Censorship and Surveillance
"A primary aim of censorship is to normalize itself," Ai Weiwei writes in his new book On Censorship.
The Global War on Free Speech
Jacob Mchangama and Jeff Kosseff discuss the global decline of free speech, why democracies are embracing censorship, and what can be done to protect open debate.
D.C. Circuit Seems Disinclined To Let Pete Hegseth Punish a Senator for His Speech
The defense secretary argues that military retirees like Sen. Mark Kelly are not allowed to say things he unilaterally deems "prejudicial to good order and discipline."
Trump's Responses to Kimmel and Comey Highlight His Contempt for Freedom of Speech
The president is not shy about using government power to punish people for saying things that offend him.
