Teen Arrested Under Connecticut's Unconstitutional Hate Speech Law for Racist Social Media Post
Calling a classmate a racist slur on Snapchat is offensive. It’s also protected speech.
First Amendment
Facebook's Oversight Board Was Right To Ban Trump
It's a working model for non-state governance in cyberspace that is vastly preferable to government control of social media.
Americans Don't Want Schools To Punish Off-Campus Speech
Only students support extending the power to penalize speech, raising concerns about what they’re learning in school.
John Samples: Facebook's Oversight Board Was Right To Uphold Trump Ban
A member of the board (and a Cato Institute vice president) defends the controversial decision to kick the former president off the social media platform.
Baltimore's Top Prosecutor Attempts To Send FCC Against Local Fox Affiliate
Don’t call yourself a supporter of the First Amendment while attempting to punish a media outlet for criticizing you.
Texas Lawmakers Push a Likely Unconstitutional Ban on Plant-Based Food Producers Labeling Their Products 'Meat,' 'Beef,' 'Pork'
Producers of plant-based meats argue these restrictions violate the First Amendment.
Florida Legislators Exempt Their Favorite Companies From Social Media Bill
"It's very obvious that nobody involved in [the bill] consulted a First Amendment lawyer," says TechFreedom's Berin Szóka.
Federal Regulators Require Rent Collectors To Lie About the CDC's Illegal Eviction Moratorium
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau claims to be enforcing a law that prohibits "false or misleading representations."
College Soccer Player Suing Coach Who Benched Her After She Refused to Kneel During Protest
Punishing players for kneeling, or not kneeling, is a First Amendment violation at public universities.
When Fighting 'Misinformation' Is Really Fighting Free Speech
There is no "fake news" exception to the First Amendment.
Voters Have Defeated a Texas School District's Plan To Punish Students for Microaggressions
The opposition to Southlake's plan was understandable.
The State Department Fought To Allow 'Ghost Gun' Files and Won. Why Is It Still Trying To Remove Them?
Despite its victory, the State Department is insisting that a court order to allow the files to spread is not yet technically in effect.
Tennessee Man Arrested for Posting Picture Mocking Dead Police Officer Files First Amendment Lawsuit
Police arrested and charged Joshua Garton with harassment for posting a photoshopped picture of two men urinating on a police officer's grave.
This School Punished a Cheerleader for an Off-Campus Snapchat. Does That Violate the First Amendment?
The Supreme Court weighs the power of school officials to punish students for off-campus speech.
Don't Call CPS on Parents Who Mask Their Kids; Don't Call the FCC on Tucker Carlson
Plus: 15,000 marijuana prosecutions pardoned, the latest sex trafficking urban legend, and more...
How Press Freedom—and Section 230—Led to Derek Chauvin's Conviction
Imagine a world in which media outlets were unable or afraid to post video of police and other authorities acting reprehensibly.
NYT: Tech Crackdowns Are Only Bad When Other Countries Do Them
By invoking the magic of good intentions, the Times justifies the U.S. acting like Russia and China.
Montana Becomes Latest State To Protect Free Speech With the FORUM Act
Now 14 states have legislation explicitly protecting free speech on campus.
Florida's 'Anti-Rioting' Bill Gives the Government New Powers That Have Nothing to Do With Riots
Among other things, it calls for online censorship to shield identities of public officials and lets the governor control city police budgets.
Prohibited Prayer and the Limits of Public Health Authority
The Supreme Court reaffirms that COVID-19 regulations must comply with the First Amendment.
University of Oklahoma Diversity Training Forces Students and Faculty To Affirm the School's Political Views
The mandatory online training requires users to select the “right” speech before they finish.
Supreme Court Blocks California's COVID-19 Restrictions on Private Prayer Groups
The majority reminds the 9th Circuit that the First Amendment puts limits on COVID-19 policies.
A Medical Student Questioned Microaggressions. UVA Branded Him a Threat and Banished Him from Campus.
Kieran Bhattacharya's First Amendment lawsuit can proceed, a court said.
Backpage Judge Accused of Bias Will Remain on Case
Plus: Effort to decriminalize psychedelics gains traction in California, crony capitalism at its worst, and more...
Justice Thomas Wonders When Supreme Court Will Have To Consider Social Media's Private Deplatforming Power
A moot case about Trump blocking tweets leads to concerns that tech companies have too much control over speech.
A Professor Pushed Back Against 'White Fragility' Training. The College Investigated Her for 9 Months.
The chaos at Lake Washington Institute of Technology is by no means an isolated occurrence.
Free Speech Under Threat from E.U. Campaign Against 'Terrorist Content'
Civil liberties advocates warn that the legislation threatens activism, journalism, and satire.
Cops Tried To Force a Man To Delete a Video of Them Beating a Suspect. They Got Qualified Immunity.
The officers knowingly violated the First Amendment, said the court. But that doesn't matter.
Senator Elizabeth Warren Channels Her Inner Trump
Threatening government action to stop "snotty tweets" is not a good look.
Government is Still the Biggest Threat to Free Speech
When Amazon won't sell your book, you can head to Barnes & Noble. When government cancels your expression, there's nowhere left to go.
Government Censorship Is the Worst Cancel Culture of All
Politicians on the right and the left are coming for your free speech.
Texas Senators Want Sports Teams To Shut Up and Play the Anthem
Texas state senators introduced a bill requiring the national anthem at all pro sports events.
The Kentucky Bill That Would Criminalize Words That Offend Cops Also Would Authorize Arrests for Distributing Water Bottles
The heavy-handed measure, a direct response to the protests provoked by the shooting of Breonna Taylor, looks like an attempt to deter constitutionally protected activity.
These Big Tech Bills Are Unconstitutional. State Lawmakers Don't Care.
Plus: Problems with the PRO Act, what libertarian feminism isn't, and more...
Iowa Reporter Acquitted After Being Arrested While Covering George Floyd Protests
The case drew national outrage from press freedom groups, who called the prosecution excessive and a threat to journalism.
These Nonprofit 'Disclosure' Requirements Are an Assault on the First Amendment
A California rule and a bill approved by the House seem designed to chill freedom of speech and freedom of association.
Twitter Sues Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, Accusing Him of Retaliating Against the Company for Banning Donald Trump
Plus: Iowa limits early voting, a prominent sex trafficking "rescue" group relies on psychics, and more...
Biden Justice Department Sides Against Free Speech Advocates in Big First Amendment Case
The federal government weighs in on Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L..
Kentucky Bill Would Make Insulting a Cop a Crime
Courts have widely upheld the First Amendment right to hurl choice words or gestures at police.
California's Requirement That Nonprofits Disclose Donor Information Poses a Grave Threat to Freedom of Association
A broad coalition of groups is asking the Supreme Court to overturn the state's policy.
Democrats Demand Social Media Users Talking Politics Disclose Certain Foreign Connections
Plus: The era of sovereign influencers, a new experiment in universal basic income, and more...
Tennessee Republicans Call on University Presidents To Punish Student-Athletes for Kneeling
These demands obviously violate the First Amendment.
Lawmakers to Cable Providers: Why Are You Letting News Channels Say These Things?
This misguided effort to combat "misinformation" is a brazen assault on free speech.
Americans' Lust To 'Cancel' One Another Should Spark Soul Searching
It's the result of our overly politicized culture where many people like to shame and destroy their enemies, but it is undermining the benefits of free and open dialogue.
FBI Arrests Activist Daniel Baker Over Posts About Police Abuse and Self Defense
Plus: The aftermath of the New York Times' anti-Pornhub crusade, and more...
Trump's Impeachment Lawyers Try To Deconstruct the Link Between What He Said and What His Followers Did
No amount of parsing can obscure his responsibility for the deadly attack on the Capitol.
Trump's Dubious First Amendment Defense Against Impeachment
He is on firmer ground in arguing that the Senate does not have the authority to try a former president, although that issue is highly contested.
