First Amendment News

A Washington Post editorial, August 18, 2022, laments that politicians are placing restrictions on journalists trying to cover the news. The worst offenders have been candidates backed by former president Donald Trump. The Post writes, “These trends don’t just hinder media coverage. They also insulate would-be leaders from tough questions and thorny issues. Mostly, they hurt voters by leaving them less informed.” Chris Quinn, the editor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer, rejected ground rules for

Madison, Wisconsin won a victory in federal court as the court ruled that the free speech rights of coffee shop owners were not violated by public health orders to take down a sign saying “this is a mask free zone.”(Wisconsin State Journal, August 16, 2022, by Chris Rickert) A Washington state court of appeals ruled that the act of not wearing a mask did not qualify for First Amendment protection. The court cited a number

The National Right to Life Committee is proposing model legislation hobbling journalists reporting on abortion. The legislation would make it a felony to publish information “knowing that the information will be used or is reasonably likely to be used” in an abortion. A bill approximating the model has already been introduced in South Carolina. FAC’s David Loy fears that news outlets could find themselves facing penalties of up to 25 years in prison. (Mother Jones,

The ACLU of Northern California used documents obtained through the California Public Records Act (CPRA) to show how sheriffs in the Central Valley are violating state law in collaborating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The Sheriffs are denying due process to immigrants while ICE routinely deports them. An ACLUNC newsletter article by Sarah Hopkins gives details on the collaboration: “The investigation uncovered chilling collusion tactics, including: sheriffs’ officials holding people in jail for extra

Since a fatwa was issued in 1989 by the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, Iran’s leader, calling for the murder of Salman Rushdie, Rushdie has spoken out against restricting the free exchange of ideas, noting in 2021 that increasingly “being offended is a valid critique….” Kohmeini and other Muslims objected to Rushdie’s novel, “The Satanic Verses” for its portrayal of the Prophet Muhammad. Rushdie’ stabbing last week at a literary event in western New York has reopened