First Amendment News

A recently published book reveals how, despite the scant instances of suppression of conservative speech, Fox News and other right wing media outlets have conjured up a bogus free speech crisis in the nation’s colleges. Ralph Wilson and Isaac Kamola report that the claims are well funded and organized. “This orchestration,” they write, “involves a tightly controlled network of conservative business people, philanthropists, state and federal lawmakers, and academics, whose policy decisions, speeches, and teachings

Zach Wheeler in TechCrunch, November 23, 2021, recounts that a year after filing a story about a hack of a server at Mexico’s embassy in Guatemala, the FBI contacted him at the request of the Mexican government. Wheeler said such contacts are common in reporting cybersecurity as are attempts to kill a story or obtain a retraction. In addition he said, “Journalists covering cybersecurity — a beat rarely known for its chipper and upbeat headlines

The ACLU and the Knight Institute are challenging the 40-year-old ruling that prevents former government employees from writing or speaking publicly without permission from the government. They say the ban prevents the public from hearing from informed former employees on issues of vital importance. In their petition to the court, the groups argue, “Petitioners here, and millions of former public servants like them, are subject to an onerous and far-reaching system of prior restraint that

The House committee investigating the January 6 insurrection argued before the D.C. Circuit appeals court that they need White House records to safeguard future elections and stem the growth of executive power. (Politico, November 22, 2021, by Kyle Cheney) The court gave former President Donald Trump a respite by temporarily blocking the National Archives from releasing White House records to the committee. The committee said any further delay could have long-term repercussions for their quest