Censoring the Internet Won't Protect Kids
Sen. Rand Paul makes the case against the Kids Online Safety Act.
Censorship
Can Nostr Make Twitter's Dreams Come True?
Twitter's founder says Nostr is “100 percent what we wanted”—an open, ownerless network.
U.K. Politicians Target Social Media To Deflect From Riots and Civil Unrest
As Britain grapples with riots, politicians shift focus to “holding tech accountable” by pushing for censorship and sidestepping the deeper issues fueling the chaos.
More Than Half of Americans Think the First Amendment Provides Too Many Rights
"Evidently, one out of every two Americans wishes they had fewer civil liberties," said one researcher. "This is a dictator's fantasy."
KOSA Moves Forward in Congress, Threatening Free Speech and Encryption
Only Sens. Paul and Wyden are expected to vote "no" on Tuesday. Power to stop KOSA now resides with the House.
Judge Tosses Former 'Disinformation' Chief's Defamation Suit, Says She Really Was a Censor
Nina Jankowicz finds out the truth may hurt, but it isn’t lawsuit bait.
Senate To Vote on Web Censorship Bill Disguised as Kids Safety
The Kids Online Safety Act would have cataclysmic effects on free speech and privacy online.
Great Moments in Unintended Consequences: DoorDash, Google AI, and French Wikipedia (Vol. 16)
Good intentions, bad results.
Why the Media Covered for Biden
Plus: A listener asks whether Bruce Springsteen's song Born in the U.S.A is actually patriotic.
Saudi Arabia Reportedly Sentences Netflix Comedian to 13 Years
The creator of Masameer County was charged with promoting homosexuality and terrorism for his South Park-style satirical cartoon.
Judges Block Indiana and Mississippi Age Verification Laws for Porn, Social Media
And the Supreme Court agrees to weigh in.
A Law Professor's Beef With a First Amendment 'Spinning Out of Control': Too Much Speech of the Wrong Sort
Even as he praises judicial decisions that made room for "dissenters" and protected "robust political debate," Tim Wu pushes sweeping rationales for censorship.
Social Media Moderation Is Speech, Says Supreme Court
The Court is remanding these two cases for more analysis—but it made its views on some key issues clear.
The TikTok Ban Is a Blueprint for More Social Media Censorship
China's free speech record is bad, but the federal government's isn't so great either.
SCOTUS Declines To Punish the Feds for Suppressing Social Media Speech
The verdict in Murthy v. Missouri is a big, flashing green light that jawboning may resume.
Billboard Comparing Trump to Fidel Castro Removed After Politician Complained
It's a classic case of jawboning.
Jay Bhattacharya on COVID, Social Media Censorship, and Trump vs. Biden
"It’s not like public health is infallible," the Stanford professor and Great Barrington Declaration author tells Reason's Nick Gillespie.
The Stop Comstock Act Doesn't Go Far Enough
Upcoming legislation would repeal parts of the 1873 law that could be used to target abortion, but the Comstock Act's reach is much more broad than that.
President Biden Should Pardon D.M. Bennett
Issuing a posthumous pardon for Bennett would reaffirm our nation’s commitment to free expression and intellectual freedom.
Texas Public Library Can't Remove Books About 'Butts and Farts,' Federal Judge Says
The court ruled that it is unconstitutional for officials to remove library books with the "intent to deprive patrons of access to ideas with which they disagree."
'If They Can Control the Flow of Information, They Can Control You': BASEDPolitics Sues To Stop TikTok Ban
The plaintiffs hope to "help Republicans and conservatives see why this ban is inconsistent with the free speech values they say they care about."
Australian Censors Back Down, Highlighting the U.S. as a Free Speech Haven
Officials suspend efforts to force X to suppress the world’s access to video of a crime.
Report: E.U. Censorship Laws Mostly Suppress Legal Speech
European speech regulations reach way too far to muzzle perfectly acceptable content.
Vox Wants Progressives To Support Free Speech for the Wrong Reasons
Eric Levitz argues that the left should take a stand against censorship—for practical rather than principled reasons.
TikTok Asks Court To Declare Ban Unconstitutional
Congress is "silencing the 170 million Americans who use the platform to communicate," the company argues.
Australia Tries To Censor the World
Local hostility to free speech may become a global problem.
Nina Jankowicz, Disinformation Czar, Is Back in Action
The American Sunlight Project contends that researchers are being silenced by their critics.
Worst 4/20 Ever
Plus: A listener asks the editors to steel man the case for the Jones Act, an antiquated law that regulates maritime commerce in U.S. waters.
China's Retribution
Plus: Homework liberation in Poland, Orthodox rabbi tells students to flee Columbia, toddler anarchy, and more...
If They Ban TikTok, Is Apple Next?
Banning companies for doing business with China is a bad path to start down.
Adult Entertainment Group Asks Supreme Court To Block Texas Age-Verification Law
"Profound irreparable harm flows from the Act's chilling of adults' access to protected sexual expression," the filing reads.
Social Media Platforms Have Property Rights Too
The push to regulate social media content infringes on rights guaranteed by the Fifth Amendment.
Read the FCC's Crank Mail About Saturday Night Live
One viewer said it should be illegal to take the Lord's name in vain on TV—and that was one of the more coherent complaints.
Misinformation Watchdogs Keep Failing Upward
And they're still trying to censor speech on social media.
Why Did Harvard Fire Martin Kulldorff?
Martin Kulldorff talks about his dismissal from Harvard Medical School, persisting college vaccine mandates, and surviving COVID-era censorship on the latest episode of Just Asking Questions.
Turkey's Strongman Had a No Good, Very Bad Weekend
The Turkish opposition ran circles around President Recep Tayyib Erdogan's party in local elections. It could be the beginning of the end of his 20-year reign.
Defending Pornography on Feminist Grounds: A Q&A With Nadine Strossen
"There were many of us who opposed censoring pornography...precisely because of our commitment to feminist goals and principles," says the former ACLU chief.
Free Speech Is Under Attack in the U.S., but It's on the Ropes Elsewhere
“Even open democracies have implemented restrictive measures,” finds a global report.
The Supreme Court Should Reject Clandestine Government Censorship of Online Speech
The Biden administration’s social media meddling went far beyond "information" and "advice."
'Hamstringing the Government': A Viral Narrative Distorts Ketanji Brown Jackson's Understanding of Free Speech
If partisans have one thing in common, it's confirmation bias.
Supreme Court Says Officials Who Block Critics on Social Media Might Be Violating the First Amendment
The justices established guidelines for determining whether that is true in any particular case.
SCOTUS Ponders Whether the Biden Administration Coerced Social Media Platforms To Censor Speech
Several justices seemed concerned that an injunction would interfere with constitutionally permissible contacts.
The CCP Sucks. So Does Banning TikTok.
Plus: A listener asks about Republicans and Democrats monopolizing political power in the United States.
The New York Times Again Worries That Free Speech Endangers Democracy
The newspaper portrays the constitutional challenge to the government's social media meddling as a conspiracy by Donald Trump's supporters.
Banning TikTok Would Give the Feds Way Too Much Power
"It's a disturbing gift of unprecedented authority to President Biden and the Surveillance State," said Sen. Rand Paul (R–Ky.).
TikTok's Opponents Want Chinese-style Censorship in America
Instead of freeing Americans from censorship, the TikTok bill would tighten the U.S. government's control over social media.
