"Authoritarians in the Academy": The Free Speech Recession
When universities are global institutions, the global speech environment matters.
Education
College Students Across the Political Spectrum Support Shouting Down Opponents
Once a left-wing fetish, the heckler’s veto has gained conservative adherents.
Florida Gets Closer To Being a 'Free State' With Plan To End School Vaccine Mandate
Surgeon General Joseph A. Ladapo proposed ending the requirement that public school children be vaccinated, calling the mandate "slavery."
Sex Ed Classes Can't Teach 'Gender Ideology' If States Want Federal Funds
Plus: Court refuses to break up Google, Epstein victims speak at the Khanna/Massie press conference, a shift in young men's views on porn
As Public School Enrollment Drops, Alternative Options Gain Traction
Private schools, charter schools, and homeschooling add students despite dwindling numbers of kids.
The Gun-Free School Zones Act Is Doubly Dubious
The federal law relies on a risible reading of the Commerce Clause to restrict a constitutional right.
Federal Funding for Universities Comes With Strings. Now Trump Is Pulling Them.
The potential nationalization and forced revenue sharing of university patents makes a strong case for the separation of economy and state.
America Educates the World's Best and Brightest—Then Shows Them the Door
As students grapple with an unfriendly immigration system and targeted crackdowns on campus, how long will the U.S. remain the world's top study destination?
Glenn Jacobs Body-Slams Big Government
The former WWE star and current mayor of Knox County explains how limiting government, protecting economic freedom, and trusting communities over bureaucrats can build a stronger foundation for liberty.
Trump Changes His Mind
Plus: War Department, government ownership stake in Intel, National Guard members become cleaning crews, and more...
College Football Is a Fun, Glorious Mess. These 7 Changes Would Make It Even Better.
How to fix the conferences, the rules, the playoffs, and more
West Texas A&M Drag Ban Defeated in Court
Obviously drag shows are protected by the First Amendment.
Rob Manfred Can't Fix Baseball. But These 4 Changes Might.
Plus: College football insanity, fans jailed in Venezuela, and the benefits of betting
Advice to Entering Law Students - 2025
Some suggestions that might help you make better use of the opportunities available to you in law school.
Trump Administration Sued for Violating Foreign Students' Free Speech Rights
The First Amendment protects everybody from the government, whether citizen or not.
MAGA Frat Guys and Bitter Incels Agree: Sorority Girls Are Objects
Some right-wing influencers love sorority girls because they're hot. Others hate them...because they're hot.
Deb Fillman: Why Do We Send Kids to School?
Education writer and entrepreneur Deb Fillman joins Just Asking Questions to discuss the tenuous relationship between school and education.
The New York Times Goes Full Karen on Mark Zuckerberg
"They suspected the house was being used as a school," notes the Times, in a moment of high drama, "and they were right."
America's Two-Front War on Science
Universities’ internal culture wars threaten free speech and inquiry, but political attacks on research funding and infrastructure are crippling U.S. scientific leadership.
Are Students Engaged in Performative Virtue Signaling?
Interesting results from a survey of undergraduates at two universities.
The University Presidents Who Want to Fix Universities Before They Get Fixed
University Presidents are divided on how to respond to pressure from the Trump Administration. Are their concerns too little, too late?
Zach Cregger's Weapons Is a Horror Film That Doesn't Tell You What To Think
A twisted, terrifying follow-up from the director of Barbarian
Does Mental Health Awareness Make Things Worse?
Illinois wants to give mental health screenings to elementary schoolers. Will that actually help struggling kids?
A First Amendment Lawsuit Highlights the Chilling Impact of Speech-Based Deportation on Student Journalists
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression is seeking an injunction that would protect noncitizens at The Stanford Daily from arrest and removal because of their published work.
On the Politics of University Autonomy
My new paper thinking through the political calculus of independent universities
Trumpifying Gaza Aid
Plus: Columbia forced to release racial data, school choice battles, and more...
Harvard Is Wise To Not Consider $500 Million Settlement With Trump
The university's president has maintained that Harvard will not risk losing its academic freedom, and it may delay any settlement negotiations until after a final court ruling.
Upholding a Vaccine Mandate, the 9th Circuit Embraces an Alarmingly Broad Definition of 'Public Health'
The appeals court held that the government may require COVID-19 shots based purely on the benefits to recipients.
Safe Spaces Are Coming Back to Brown University—All Thanks to Trump
The campus' settlement with the federal government is bound to create free speech headaches.
Eric Adams Has Turned His Back on the Charter School Movement He Once Embraced
Once a champion of school choice, New York’s mayor has caved to union pressure—leaving tens of thousands of students stuck on waitlists.
How Sports Tickets Got So Expensive—Or Did They?
Plus: regulating college sports, forgiving baseball’s legends, and Happy Gilmore 2
The Value of Institutional Neutrality for Free Inquiry
My new article in the First Amendment Law Review's symposium on campus free speech
Famine in Gaza
Plus: The Columbia settlement as a "blueprint" for going after other universities, South Park lampoons Trump, and more...
Diversity Statements and the First Amendment
My new article on diversity statements in faculty hiring and the First Amendment
Columbia's $200 Million Deal Will Placate Trump—for Now
To reinstitute $400 million in federal funding, the university agreed to implement plans to combat antisemitism and to appoint an independent monitor to oversee changes.
Trump Administration Opens New Investigation Into Harvard, Escalating Pressure
The investigation comes only two days after a federal judge cast doubt on the Trump administration’s argument in Harvard’s lawsuit over federal funding.
Defending Its Speech-Based Deportation Policy, the Trump Administration Says 'No Such Policy Exists'
The government's gaslighting strategy suggests that federal officials are not confident about the constitutionality of punishing students for expressing anti-Israel views.
Trump vs. Harvard
Plus: City-run grocery stores, Peronists for prison, California can't figure out how minimum wage hikes work, and more...
Why Are Students Using AI To Cheat? Maybe Because They Shouldn't Be In College At All
AI cheating is often a crutch for students ill-equipped to attend a four-year university.
Would "Affirmative Action" for Conservatives in Academia "Backfire"?
Universities should be wary of adopting practices or policies that "discourage curiosity and reward narrowness of thought."
Trump Wants Harvard To Hand Over Info on Over 10,000 International Students
The university says it will continue to defend itself against government overreach.
