Free Press
A New Federal Press Shield Bill Falters Just Before the Finish Line in Congress
A law to protect people engaged in journalism from having to reveal sources gets blocked by Sen. Tom Cotton.
Cronyist Journalism Measure Could Prompt Facebook To Ban News
Plus: ACLU sides against religious freedom, abortions after Dobbs, and more...
'Real' Journalists Recognize That Prosecuting Julian Assange Poses a Grave Threat to Freedom of the Press
The Justice Department’s discretion is the only thing that protects them from a similar fate.
Major Media Outlets Condemn Continued Prosecution of Julian Assange
The open letter warns the indictment “threatens to undermine America’s First Amendment and the freedom of the press.”
The Babylon Bee Joins The Onion in Decrying an Ohio Law That Makes Parody a Felony
The two fake news organizations want the Supreme Court to review the case of a man who was arrested for making fun of the police.
Las Vegas Elected Official Robert Telles Arrested as Suspect in Journalist Jeff German's Death
Plus: The wage premium from having a college degree is falling, study finds black access to firearms reduced lynchings during Jim Crow, and more...
How J.K. Rowling Became Targeted by Both Progressive Millennials and Christian Conservatives
Perhaps Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone has the mark of a great story—everyone can find cause both to love it and to hate it.
Salman Rushdie's The Satanic Verses Enraged the Muslim World
In 1989, Iranian leader Ayatollah Khomeini called for the author and those involved in the book's publication to be put to death.
How Removing Toni Morrison's Beloved From Curriculum Helped Glenn Youngkin Win in Virginia
Virginia lawmakers passed a bill allowing parents to opt out of certain lessons, which was vetoed by then-Gov. Terry McAuliffe.
How Wiseguy Challenged New York's 'Son of Sam' Laws
Turning terrible events into art is good, actually.
How Slaughterhouse-Five Became a Repeated Target of Book Burners
As recently as 2011, a school board in Missouri barred the book from the curriculum and ordered it confined to a special section of the school's library.
The Failed Campaign To Kill To Kill a Mockingbird
Recent moves to censor the book have come from Virginia, Mississippi, and California.
Allen Ginsberg's Howl and Other Poems Triggered Confiscations, Arrests
San Francisco port officials seized copies of Howl and Other Poems in 1957, accusing publisher Lawrence Ferlinghetti of obscenity.
Fahrenheit 451 Was Once Sanitized for Public Schools
A publishing company ironically removed the original version of the Ray Bradbury novel depicting mass media censorship.
Dr. Seuss' Books Gained Popularity After They Were Removed
And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street and other titles shot up Amazon's bestseller list after being self-censored by Dr. Seuss Enterprises.
Dav Pilkey's The Adventures of Ook and Gluk Is Charming, Not Racist
Pilkey's whole gag is that the censorial impulse is ridiculous and kids instinctively know it should be mocked.
Lady Chatterley's Lover Case Dealt a Blow to U.S. Book Censors
Up through the 1950s, federal agents kept confiscating books they deemed obscene. But in 1959, a judge ruled that D.H. Lawrence's book deserved First Amendment protection.
Hobbes' Leviathan and Thousands of Others Were Off-Limits to Catholics
Leviathan was a challenge to the governing independence of the Holy See.
You Can't Stop Pirate Libraries
Where there's demand for books, the internet will supply them.
How SEC Gag Orders Silence the Accused
"They don't want the defendant to tell this side of the story," says Clark Neily of the Cato Institute.
Read the Real Romeo and Juliet, Not the Kid-Friendly Version
Though book banners may try to convince otherwise, students don't need protection from the passion portrayed in Shakespeare's classic.
How the Controversy Around When Harry Became Sally Boosted Its Popularity
Amazon's decision to stop selling the book shows the pressure platforms are under to reject speech that doesn't conform to progressive orthodoxy.
Pulitzer Prize-Winning Book on Prison Uprisings Banned in New York Prisons
Heather Ann Thompson's Blood in the Water might lead to "disobedience," prison officials say.
Trans Author Jennings' I Am Jazz Is One of the Most Banned Books in the U.S.
The book may never achieve the cultural recognition of some other top censorship targets, but the fight over I Am Jazz symbolizes America's trans moral panic.
When Spiegelman's Maus Was Challenged, Sales Spiked
How school board members lashed out against dirty words
Julian Assange's Case Is a Frightening Omen for Press Freedom
World journalists have been quicker than Americans to see danger in prosecuting the Wikileaks founder.
U.K. Approves Extradition of Julian Assange to the U.S.
The WikiLeaks founder faces espionage charges for publishing classified U.S. information, a prosecution with serious implications for all our First Amendment protections.
Florida Officials Use a Victim's Rights Law To Stop a Newspaper from Printing Deputies' Names
They shot and killed a man they were trying to evict. Doesn’t the public have the right to know who they are?
Hong Kong Is a 'Wake-Up Call for the World'
Former Apple Daily writer Simon Lee says China's crackdown reveals the CCP's ambitions for global authoritarianism.
Freedom Is a Victim of Russia's Invasion of Ukraine
This war, like all wars, will invigorate the state and be deadly to liberty.
Russia's Remaining Independent Journalists Suffer for Their Work
Journalists often do their best work in places that offer the least welcoming environment.
Jeff Kosseff: Why Anonymous Speech Is Good—and Constitutional
The author of the definitive history of Section 230 is back with a controversial new book, The United States of Anonymous.
Viktor Orbán's Reelection Shows Mere Democracy Is Not Enough
The less of our lives we allow to be put to a vote, the better.
A Judge Finds a 'Substantial Basis' for the Claim That Fox News Recklessly Promoted Trump's Election Fantasy
The decision allows Smartmatic to proceed with its defamation lawsuit against Fox, two anchors, and Rudy Giuliani.
State News Networks Embrace Encryption as Russian Censorship Worsens
Plus: Musk rebuffs calls to block Russian news, the curious logic of "Buy American," and more...
Palin Faces 'Uphill Battle' in Proving the Times Defamed Her
Plus: Mask mandates and omicron cases, purging "pornography" drives calls for book bans, and more...
It's Dangerous to Allow Politicians and Officials to Decide What Constitutes 'Truth'
"Governments realize that they are in an existential battle over who controls information."
Why Aren't Journalists Howling About the Assange Prosecution?
Plus two more topics to howl about...
Julian Assange Extradition Decision the Latest Blow to Freedom of the Press
Either everybody gets to enjoy journalistic freedom, or it will turn into glorified public relations work for the powers-that-be.
U.K. Rules Julian Assange May Be Extradited to the U.S. To Face Espionage Charges
In a significant threat to the free press, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange faces decades in federal prison for leaking classified documents.
The New York Times Is Protected by Freedom of the Press. So Is James O'Keefe.
The newspaper wrongly implies that press freedom is limited to "real" journalists.
Austria Orders the Unvaccinated Back Into Lockdown
Plus: Myanmar releases imprisoned U.S. journalist Danny Fenster, another budding San Francisco small business is strangled by red tape, and more...
Hong Kong's Free Press Is Dying
After Chinese authorities conducted newsroom raids and arrested top editors, pro-democracy publication Apple Daily realized it could no longer safely operate.
FBI Backs Off Attempt To Subpoena Info on USA Today Readers
Plus: America's love-hate relationship with booze, Twitter CEO says "bitcoin changes absolutely everything," 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.
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.
Civil Liberties Groups Plead With Biden To Stop Persecuting Julian Assange
Plus: Oklahoma cosmetologists fight insane licensing requirement, Australia doesn't understand how search engines work, and more...
