California Bill Offers Phony Solution to Fake News Problem
Proposal to verify online "bots" is security theater that will make it harder for small online firms to compete with the likes of Facebook.
Free Speech
"The City Cannot … Prospectively Try[] to Guess Whether Certain [Speakers] … Will … Create a Disturbance"
Spokane Valley (Wash.) resists groups' letter opposing event put on by speaker who has at times drawn unruly supporters.
University of Virginia Hires 'Social Sentinel' to Monitor Students' Social Media Posts
"They are being watched, and that's a problem."
Hours After FOSTA Passes, Reddit Bans 'Escorts' and 'SugarDaddy' Communities
The great content crackdown has begun.
Social Media Beats Censorship in Iran
The vigorous debate over censorship shows how much Iran has changed in recent years.
Political Correctness Strikes Again: High School Teacher Fired for Offensive Comments About Troops
"The classroom should never be a place where students feel that they are picked at, bullied, intimidated."
FOSTA Passes Senate, Making Prostitution Ads a Federal Crime Against Objections from DOJ and Trafficking Victims
The measure will "make it harder, not easier, to root out and prosecute sex traffickers," said Sen. Ron Wyden, one of only two senators to vote no on FOSTA.
YouTube Comedian Convicted of Hate Crime for Making Dumb Video of a Dog Saluting Hitler
"Keep fighting for free speech, the great meme war," said Count Dankula.
Sex, Lies, and Constitutional Law: The Stormy Daniels Settlement Agreement
There is, it turns out, more to the Stormy Daniels Affair than meets the eye.
Court Allows Lawsuit Against Ideological Group for Discriminatory Rejection of Noncommercial Ad in Its Publication
The National Lawyers Guild refused to run a congratulatory advertisement submitted by an Israeli organization -- the organization is suing for discrimination in "public accommodations," and a New York court has let the case go forward.
Cambridge Analytica Was Doing Marketing, Not Black Magic
There's no reason for alarm (yet) over a Facebook data "breach" that benefited a firm with ties to Trump's campaign.
Some Pundits Say There's No Campus Free Speech 'Crisis.' Here's Why They're Wrong.
"Everything we think about the political correctness debate is wrong," says Vox's Matt Yglesias. Not exactly.
Trump's Anti-Speech Agenda Gets a Boost From Lefty Lawyers and Academics
Declining support for unfettered debate among politicians, academics, and the public doesn't bode well for the future of free speech.
5 Reasons Not to Feed the Russian Troll Hysteria
"If voters are making [stupid] decisions," says Senior Editor Jacob Sullum, "that's not the Russians' fault."
Will and Grace Botches the Gay Wedding Cake Fight
Nobody has the right to force bakers to print speech they hate. The debate is over what counts as speech.
Sign Referencing Civil War Hero Is Sexual Harassment, Says Massachusetts Lawmaker
Rep. Michelle DuBois wants to remove a statehouse sign that reads "General Hooker Entrance" because it is an affront to "women's dignity."
The Death of Stalin Director Armando Iannucci on Free Minds Under Soviet Rule
Under Stalin, people could be killed for carrying joke books about him. They did it anyway.
New Orleans Threatens Man with Jail for Mural Replicating Trump's Crass 'Grab Them by the Pussy' Comments
ACLU steps in to fight zoning regulations that appear to let officials veto art based on content.
City Threatens to Sue Online Gadfly for Complaining About Bad Smells
A web developer's First Amendment lawsuit says Sibley, Iowa, officials conspired to silence him.
Teacher on Leave After Questioning Whether School Would Let Pro-Life Students Walk Out, Too
"Would that be allowed by the administration?"
Controversial Law Professor's Comments on Affirmative Action Get Her Banned From Teaching First-Year Classes
For months, Penn Law has resisted calls to punish Amy Wax for her public comments on race. Yesterday, they caved.
Facebook Bans Nationalist Anti-Muslim Group Britain First
"We do not do this lightly, but they have repeatedly posted content designed to incite animosity and hatred against minority groups."
Your Right to Free Speech, Like My Right to Self-Defense, Isn't Open to Debate
Rallying to call for restrictive laws is a whole lot easier than getting people to submit to them.
Whittington on Offensive Speech in the Classroom
Princeton University's Keith Whittington explains why it is sometimes wise -- even necessary -- to expose students to potentially offensive material
Today in History: SCOTUS Protects the Corporate Speech Rights of The New York Times
Marking the 54th anniversary of New York Times Co. v. Sullivan
Judge Tells Trump to Pretend to Listen to Twitter Haters
A lawsuit leads to a suggestion that the president engage in a kinder, gentler ignoring.
University of Miami Demands $7500 for Security for Free Speech Debate Involving Charles Murray [UPDATE: Dean's response added, post bumped up to reflect that]
That is what students at the University of Miami School of Law are reporting. [EARLIER UPDATE: The Dean tells me that things are more complicated than at first reported, and they're trying to see if things can be worked out; I hope to have more from the Dean in a few days.] [UPDATE 3/15: The University has agreed to pay the security fee.]
Some Progressives Targeting the First Amendment, Too
It's not just the Second Amendment in their crosshairs.
A Jailed Model Claims to Have Evidence of Russian Meddling in U.S. Elections. Her Story Is Even Weirder Than You Think.
Rybka has spent the past several years as a protegee of pickup artist and seduction coach Alex Lesley-and picked up a plausible claim to 2016 election dirt along the way.
"Dressmakers, Bakers, and the Equality of Rights"
A very interesting piece by Stanford Prof. Michael McConnell on the Masterpiece Cakeshop case.
The First Amendment Applies to the FDA Too
Can the government prevent drug firms from telling patients true facts about the medicine they prescribe?
$20 Fee for Porn Access Proposed in Rhode Island
Device makers would be required to block porn, prostitution hubs, and all content that fails "current standards of decency."
Guns, Code, and Freedom
Cody Wilson on his war against power, the irreversible course of the 3D-printed gun, and America's Weimar moment
Stone Age Statue Was Too Racy for Facebook
How can a company be expected to arbitrate "fake news" when it can't even tell ancient artifacts from porn?
Public-Sector Unions Deserve to Be Destroyed
Mandatory fees are an assault on free association.
French Prosecution of Marine Le Pen for Tweeting Islamic State Execution Images
The charges -- for "distribution of violent images" -- could lead to up to three years in prison and a $90,000 fine.
Meet Speech First, a New Combatant in the Campus Free Speech Wars
"We wanted to capitalize on the real groundswell of support behind free speech from all walks of life."
House Passes 'Anti Sex-Trafficking' Bill Opposed by Both DOJ and Trafficking Survivors
The bill makes "promoting prostitution" a federal crime, holds websites legally liable for user-posted content, and lets states retroactively prosecute offenders.
R.I. Proposal to Tax Violent Video Games
But such a content-based tax would violate the First Amendment.
Justice Kennedy Takes Aim at Public Sector Unions in Janus Oral Arguments
"It seems to me your argument doesn't have much weight."
Stossel: The Stosscars!
John Stossel picks the best and worst political performances of the year.
My Podcast Debate on Mandatory Union Fees and the First Amendment
The National Constitution Center invited Alicia Hickok and me to debate Janus; Ms. Hickok wrote an amicus brief supporting Janus, and I signed an amicus brief supporting the AFSCME.
School Chief Threatens to Punish Student Protesters Who Skip Classes by…Banning Them from Attending Classes
He'd also like everyone to trim their hair so it doesn't touch their ears.
'Crisis Actors,' Conspiracy Theories, and the Fear of Social Media
Yes, kooky rumors can spread quickly online. In this case, the angry reactions to those rumors may be spreading even faster.
