free speech

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Appeals Court Upholds US Ban of TikTok

It's a 'resounding defeat' for the social media platform based in China, will require ban or sale

(Newser) - A federal appeals court panel on Friday upheld a law that could lead to a ban on TikTok in a few short months, handing a resounding defeat to the popular social media platform as it fights for its survival in the US. The US Court of Appeals for the District...

University Sued Over Canceled Oct. 7 Vigil

Students for Justice in Palestine group says First Amendment rights are being violated

(Newser) - A First Amendment lawsuit has been filed in federal court to challenge the University of Maryland's decision to cancel a vigil on Oct. 7, the anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israel that sparked the war in Gaza. The Students for Justice in Palestine group planned the vigil to...

Arrest of the 'Russian Mark Zuckerberg' Is a Flashpoint
Arrest of
Telegram
Founder
Unprecedented
the rundown
Aug 26, 2024 8:55 AM CDT

Arrest of Telegram Founder Unprecedented

Pavel Durov remains in custody in France, and the free-speech debate has begun

(Newser) - The co-founder of the popular messaging app Telegram remains in custody in France after his surprise arrest at an airport there over the weekend. Authorities say Pavel Durov, 39, has failed to rein in criminal activity on his site, but the app in a new statement called it "absurd...

Supreme Court Punts on Social Media Speech Rights

SCOTUS returns cases in Texas and Florida claiming that users were being censored

(Newser) - The Supreme Court on Monday kept a hold on efforts in Texas and Florida to limit how Facebook, TikTok, X, YouTube, and other social media platforms regulate content posted by their users. The justices returned the cases to lower courts in challenges from trade associations for the companies, reports the...

After Storm of Threats, Bragg's Office Makes an Ask

Prosecutors ask judge to keep much of Trump gag order in place in hush-money case till sentencing

(Newser) - Manhattan's district attorney has asked the judge who oversaw Donald Trump's hush-money trial to extend the former president's gag order, with modifications. The Guardian notes that the gag order, which Trump's circle has long pushed back on, was placed on Trump before his felony trial kicked...

Supreme Court Clears Way for NRA's Free-Speech Lawsuit

Gun-rights group sued a former New York state official, said she tried to get it blacklisted

(Newser) - The Supreme Court on Thursday cleared the way for a National Rifle Association lawsuit against a former New York state official over claims she violated its free-speech rights. As the AP reports, the unanimous opinion reverses a lower court's decision tossing out the gun rights group's lawsuit...

She Says Car-Honking Is Free Speech. Appeals Court Says No
SCOTUS Won't Hear
Challenge to Honking Law
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Mar 2, 2024 4:20 PM CST

SCOTUS Won't Hear Challenge to Honking Law

California woman argued that hitting the horn as 'personal expression' is protected free speech

(Newser) - The Supreme Court has declined to hear a case on whether honking a car horn is protected free speech, leaving in place a lower court's ruling upholding a California law that bans excessive honking. Lawyers for Susan Porter, who was ticketed in 2017 after honking in support of anti-Donald...

After U Penn Chief's Remarks, $100M Donation Is Withdrawn
U Penn
President
Steps Down
After Outcry
updated
Dec 9, 2023 4:49 PM CST

U Penn President Steps Down After Outcry

Elizabeth Magill, whose answers on antisemitism sparked a backlash, will remain on the faculty

(Newser) - This file has been updated with Scott Bok's resignation. Elizabeth Magill, the University of Pennsylvania president who had been pressured to resign since her congressional testimony this week about antisemitism on campus, said Saturday that she's stepping down. She will remain a tenured law faculty member, the Daily ...

Silenced Member of 'Tennessee Three' Sues State

State Rep. Justin Jones accuses Republican House speaker of 'discrimination and censorship'

(Newser) - Tennessee Rep. Justin Jones, a young Democrat who has for months been a target of state House Republicans, has had enough. The 28-year-old filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday against the state, House Speaker Cameron Sexton, and House administrative officials, alleging Republicans have repeatedly violated his constitutional rights by blocking him...

Judge: Trump Has Limits on Free Speech as a Defendant

But Tanya Chutkan also rejects the government's request for a blanket restrictive order

(Newser) - In a Friday hearing to determine just how much Donald Trump can talk publicly about his legal troubles, neither side got everything it wanted. But the judge in Trump's election interference case made clear that the former president will have to be abide by restrictions, even if he is...

Teen Suspended for Mocking Principal Sues

Tennessee student says free speech rights were violated after Instagram posts made fun of school

(Newser) - It's not unusual for students to poke fun of teachers or administrators, but one high school principal who suspended a teen for doing so is now on the receiving end of a First Amendment lawsuit. The Washington Post reports on the complaint filed Wednesday in the US District Court...

Graduate Honors Dual Heritage Despite Judge's Ruling

Court backed Colorado school district wanting to prohibit sash with Mexican, American flags

(Newser) - Although her school district told her not to, and a judge backed that decision up, a high school graduate wore a sash representing the flags of Mexico and the US to her commencement ceremony over the weekend. "Always stand up for what you believe in," Naomi Peña...

ACLU: 'After School Satan Club' Ruling a Free Speech 'Victory'

Judge decides against Pennsylvania school district's barring of group's meetings, calling it 1A violation

(Newser) - In Pennsylvania, the Saucon Valley School District backed down earlier this year from granting meeting space to the After School Satan Club after community outcry and even a shooting threat. Now, the club is celebrating what the ACLU is calling "a victory for free speech and religious freedom."...

In Russia, People 'Get Locked Away,' Jailed Reporter Tweeted

Evan Gershkovich finds support from Russian colleagues, human rights group

(Newser) - Among the issues Moscow-based Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich covered in Russia was efforts to crack down on free speech. "Reporting on Russia is now also a regular practice of watching people you know get locked away for years," he tweeted in July, per the New York ...

Florida Looks to Crack Down on Political Bloggers

Bill would force them to register like lobbyists

(Newser) - Any blogger mentioning Florida's governor or a state legislator would be required to register with the state under newly proposed legislation experts say would surely violate the First Amendment. Senate Bill 1316 states any person who writes "an article, a story, or a series of stories" about "...

Here Are the Best, Worst Colleges for Free Speech

Per Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, 3 Ivy League schools are in bottom 10

(Newser) - Students usually head off to college excited to open their minds, on campuses where academic freedom is said to be valued and the exchange of ideas paramount. However, per Greg Lukianoff, CEO of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, free speech "has gotten far worse in the last...

Anchor Sues ESPN, Arguing Retaliation Over Comments

Sage Steele says podcast remarks about Obama, vaccine mandates were made as a private citizen

(Newser) - An ESPN anchor has sued the network, saying it retaliated against her over remarks she made as a guest on an unrelated podcast last fall. The filing by Sage Steele says the company's actions were in breach of her contract and a violation of her right to free speech,...

NYT Editorial Board Sees a 'Cancel Culture' Problem

Blames the left and right on free-speech matters, while critics pile on the editorial itself

(Newser) - The editorial board of the New York Times generated a lot of conversation on Friday with a lengthy piece under the headline "America Has a Free Speech Problem." The editorial criticizes both the left and the right for being in "a destructive loop of condemnation and recrimination...

Future College Professes to Be a Haven for Free Speech

University of Austin will help students develop their views, organizers say

(Newser) - The University of Austin, its founders say, will soon rise up from a Texas campus in opposition to the censorship they believe to be pervasive at American colleges. Students and faculty will be free to present unpopular perspectives, the New York Times reports, starting next summer with Forbidden Courses—an...

They Said Her Rants Were Racist. But They Were Convicted

11 found to have harassed teen who posted anti-Islam videos

(Newser) - Eleven people have been convicted of the online harassment of a schoolgirl who posted rants against Islam , in a controversial case out of France. The girl identified only as Mila changed schools and underwent police protection after receiving what her lawyer said was more than 100,000 abusive messages, including...

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