FCC Threats Against Jimmy Kimmel Echo a Century of Speech Control
From the Fairness Doctrine to Nixon’s “raised eyebrow,” government licensing power has long chilled broadcast speech—proving the First Amendment should apply fully to the airwaves.
Free Speech
Why Did a Florida Sheriff Accuse a Group of Fishing Guides of Inciting Threats Against Public Officials?
The Hendry County Sheriff accused Captains for Clean Water of "fuel[ing] hostility and provok[ng] violent rhetoric," but a free speech advocacy group says they were well within the First Amendment.
Donald Trump and Peter Thiel Are Using AI To Supercharge the Surveillance State
Peter Thiel warns of a pending one-world totalitarian government—while himself pushing to supercharge the surveillance state.
Google Says Biden Admin Pressured Company To Remove Content
Plus: ICE helps arrest sex workers, the SIM farm "security threat," Waymo car crashes caused by human error, and more...
Trump's Vision of Broadcast Regulation Is a Threat to Conservatives
History suggests that Republicans will regret letting the FCC police TV programming.
Free Speech Unmuted: Kimmel, the FCC, and the Government's Power Over Broadcast Speech, with Prof. Ash Bhagwat (UC Davis)
Ash Bhagwat is an expert on federal communications law, as well as on the First Amendment; he is also Jane Bambauer's and my co-Executive-Editor on the Journal of Free Speech Law.
From Prison to Helping the FBI to an Apple TV Miniseries … to Google-Hallucinated Libel?
Jimmy Keene, on whom the Apple TV miniseries Black Bird was based, sues Google alleging its AI hallucinated accusations that he's a convicted murderer serving a life sentence.
60 Years Ago, Ayn Rand Denounced FCC Censorship. Brendan Carr Should Listen.
In her 1962 essay "Have Gun, Will Nudge," Rand explained exactly how the public interest standard would lead to censorship.
Free Speech Means You Can Criticize Anyone
Plus: Fallout from the Tom Homan bribery probe, U.S. forces strike Venezuelan drug boats, and Trump considers sending troops back to Afghanistan
Michigan Anti-Porn Bill Would Criminalize ASMR, Written Erotica, and Even Nonsexual Depictions of Trans People
Under the law, transgender people writing about their gender identity online could face 20 years in prison and a $100,000 fine.
America's Free Speech Culture Is Under Attack From Within
The First Amendment still stands, but the culture that supports it is eroding.
The FCC's Involvement in Canceling Jimmy Kimmel Was 'Unbelievably Dangerous,' Ted Cruz Says
Rand Paul concurs that the threats preceding the comedian's suspension were "absolutely inappropriate" because the agency has "no business weighing in on this."
The FCC Chair's Unprecedented, and Constitutionally Problematic, Response to Jimmy Kimmel
And Trump's much more extreme one. [EV writes: I bumped this post from yesterday, because it struck me as especially timely and substantively valuable.]
Should Elected Officials Censor Americans? Trump's Administration Says Yes.
Vice President J.D. Vance and Sen. Cynthia Lummis are among the latest conservatives to turn their backs on free speech when it comes to their ideological opponents.
Judge Strikes Trump's Complaint in Libel Lawsuit Against N.Y. Times
"The complaint continues ... with much more, persistently alleged in abundant, florid, and enervating detail." "[A] complaint is not a public forum for vituperation and invective—not a protected platform to rage against an adversary. A complaint is not a megaphone for public relations or a podium for a passionate oration at a political rally or the functional equivalent of the Hyde Park Speakers' Corner."
The U.N. Pullout
Plus: Eric Adams pursues trans bathroom policy change, SCOTUS to rule on Lisa Cook firing, and more...
Freddie deBoer: Charlie Kirk's Murder Reveals a Cultural Sickness
Writer Freddie deBoer discusses the assassination of Charlie Kirk and his theory of "spectacular acts of public violence" on the final episode of Just Asking Questions.
The FCC Should Let Jimmy Kimmel Be
What the Trump administration is doing to late-night comedy is clearly jawboning.
David Cole Said It Would Be Like This: The ACLU's Smart Move in Representing the NRA in NRA v. Vullo
The right would likewise be smart in protecting speech on the left today.
Brendan Carr Flagrantly Abused His Powers To Cancel Jimmy Kimmel
"We can do this the easy way or the hard way," the FCC chairman said, threatening to punish broadcasters for airing the comedian's show.
Trump's 'Firing' of Lisa Cook Is Headed for SCOTUS
Plus: Pam Bondi flunks free speech 101.
'The Free Market Is Handling It Just Fine': How Left and Right Responded to Charlie Kirk's Murder
On the latest episode of Free Media, Amber Duke and I discuss the assassination of Charlie Kirk, cancel culture, and political violence.
TikTok Isolationism
Plus: New Yorkers favor decriminalizing prostitution. An academic inquiry into "body counts." AI chatbots everywhere. And more...
AG Pam Bondi Says "We Can Prosecute You" for Refusing to Print Posters for Charlie Kirk Vigil
But there doesn't seem to be any federal law actually authorizing such prosecutions (or civil lawsuits).
Brendan Carr and Ted Cruz Don't Think Charlie Kirk's Murder Justifies Speech Restrictions
Rand Paul, who called for "a crackdown on people" who celebrated the assassination, was less careful in distinguishing between private and government action.
The Perverse Incentives for Snitch-Tagging Teachers Who Criticized Charlie Kirk
Under current First Amendment jurisprudence, more targeted harassment means it's more constitutional to fire a government worker.
Doctor Can't Be Disciplined by Washington Medical Commission for Blog Posts About COVID
The posts were "downplaying the severity of the COVID pandemic, promoting the use of ivermectin over a vaccine, and criticizing the government's response to the pandemic."
Pam Bondi Is Really Wrong About Hate Speech
The attorney general is now getting called out by fellow conservatives.
J.D. Vance Says 26 Percent of Young Liberals Justify Political Violence. Here's What the Data Really Say.
Majorities on the left and on the right denounce political violence and its celebration.
