Even if social media's harms to minors are as devastating as some claim, will age restrictions effectively mitigate them — or will they create new, greater risks for free speech, privacy, and access to information?

🚨 The First Amendment doesn't have a “fake news” exception. The FCC threatening broadcast licenses over “distorted” coverage is exactly why the news distortion rule is unconstitutional. The government doesn't get to be the arbiter of journalistic truth.

🔗 Each week, @futurefreespeech.org rounds up attacks on press freedom, online speech, protest rights, and more in our global newsletter, The Free Flow. Read the latest edition for more on these stories and other free speech news:

Arrested without a warrant with potential press freedom implications: "Rodriguez Flores is from Colombia, has lived in the U.S. for five years, and 'frequently reports on stories critical of ⁠ICE,' her lawyers said in a court filing in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee."

🔗 Such actions, @thejustncase.net argues at The Bedrock Principle, will undermine the U.S.'s efforts to combat online speech restrictions abroad: www.bedrockprinciple.com/p/freedomgov...

The Trump admin’s legitimate concerns around European censorship of online content continue to collide with its anti-free speech policies at home. Recently, DHS has increased the use of administrative subpoenas to target and unmask online critics.

Europe’s worrying online speech raids have recently made headlines. But as the U.S. launches freedom.gov to promote “digital freedom” abroad, DHS is issuing administrative subpoenas to target and unmask online critics here at home.

Should your favorite influencer have to weigh in on the latest political controversy, even when they don't make political content? If we demand speech on command, @ashkhen.bsky.social explores what that means for our free speech culture.

Fiasco is one of my favorites. It's like a ttrpg meets a Cohen brothers movie.

Defenders of the immigration crackdown claim to be demanding compliance with the law. But in enforcing said laws, the government is ignoring court orders, suppressing constitutionally protected activity, and escalating force in public spaces.

When was he supposed to do that? Between the bursts of pepper spray? Between the blows to his head?

Really good, albeit sobering, stuff from my old pal Justin.

When federal agents believe political leaders will defend their actions regardless of the facts, restraint becomes optional. Next time, things could be even worse.

"If free speech comprises a total set of human activities, does artificial intelligence merely comprise a subset?" Many thanks to @nataliealkiviadou.bsky.social and @futurefreespeech.org for inviting me to speak on this next Monday, Örebro University, Sweden: futurefreespeech.org/roundtable-o...

Rep. Andy Ogles is spot on. In Nashville, private property has already been abolished, and O'Connell and the Metro Council have seized the means of production.

How did your favorite AI chatbot rank when it comes to its “free speech culture”? To find out how we evaluated and ranked each chatbot, read the full report here: futurefreespeech.org/that-violate...

🚨 NEW REPORT 🤖 We asked 8 major AI chatbots to generate content about lawful, but controversial issues. We then scored and ranked each chatbot, factoring in company policies, model behavior, transparency, and openness to debate.

Some pundits are willfully ignoring the role the FCC played in this and are acting as if what happened to Kimmel is just a normal business decision, where an entertainer faces consequences from their employer for saying something beyond the pale on TV. www.thejustncase.net/p/jimmy-kimm...

I’m sure everyone wishes they had a house that was purchased in 1980 for $11k and passed down to a next generation. www.newschannel5.com/news/rezonin...

Hello from Pride in NYC❤️If you have a minute pls read why 1A is so important!!

Are EU digital laws being used to justify censorship in Latin America? A new guest post from @celeup.bsky.social’s Juan Martin Marinangeli and Matias Gonzalez Mama dives into Latin America’s race to implement European-style digital regulations — often without vital safeguards.

The U.S. continues to weaponize free speech in its immigration crackdown — but we’re keeping close watch🕵️‍♀️. Meanwhile, disinformation and hate speech laws are rapidly evolving across the Atlantic.

A new Tennessee law — the Protecting Everyone Against Crime and Extremism Act (PEACE Act) — appears mundane but raise serious First Amendment concerns, writes @ashkhen.bsky.social with The Future of Free Speech, a nonpartisan think tank at Vanderbilt University. @futurefreespeech.org.

Cato has published my comprehensive review of the ~240 Venezuelans the US government renditioned 2 months ago to Salvador’s notorious prison. We identified FIFTY who came legally, never violated any immigration law, but are imprisoned at the US government’s request and at US taxpayer expense.

We should all be worried about the rise of extremist and anti-democratic movements in liberal democracies. But it would be even more dangerous if we adopted illiberal means to address them. I enjoyed contributing to this thought-provoking essay with @nataliealkiviadou.bsky.social

"Democracies cannot be defended by imitating the tactics of their enemies. They must show confidence in their values, be that openness, pluralism, and the power of persuasion over prohibition." @nataliealkiviadou.bsky.social & @thejustncase.net www.bedrockprinciple.com/p/germany-ba...

Would a ban on Germany's AfD Party strengthen its democracy — or jeopardize it? Using history and human rights law, @nataliealkiviadou.bsky.social and @thejustncase.net explain how this approach can backfire.

Can social media be transformed from a divisive echo chamber into a vibrant marketplace of ideas? Imagine a platform where free speech isn’t stifled by top‐down speech restrictions but is empowered by community-driven context.

In this essay, Hirad Marami and I explore how open societies thrive when they embrace bold and challenging ideas, even from outsiders — including foreigners unafraid to dissent or criticize the government. www.bedrockprinciple.com/p/the-deport...

I never thought that, as an immigrant to the U.S., I would have to worry about how what I say might affect my legal status. Despite the crucial role that foreigners have played in expanding free speech and sparking progress throughout U.S. history, we are now at a crossroads.

Free speech in the AI age is going to be messy. But if we care about open societies, we can’t ignore how foundational these systems are becoming—and how they decide what can, and cannot, be said. Read our full updated analysis here: www.bedrockprinciple.com/p/one-year-l...

One year ago, we asked a provocative question: Are AI chatbots censoring too much? We recently updated our analysis and added some newer models. Bottom line: There’s good news and concerning news. 🧵

Read what we found here: www.bedrockprinciple.com/p/one-year-l...

A year ago, a @futurefreespeech.org report showed that many popular AI chatbots refused to generate content about controversial topics. At The Bedrock Principle, my colleagues @jordicalbad.bsky.social, Isabelle Anzabi, and I check in to see if and how things have changed. (Link in the replies)

President Trump’s effort to redefine which speech is “acceptable” highlights a deeper threat: waning public support for free expression. @economist.com cites our forthcoming report on global free speech attitudes with a warning from @mchangama.bsky.social:

🌎 Our NEW survey of 33 countries shows that for every country gaining ground, two are sliding backward since 2021. Let’s dig into how public attitudes toward free expression are changing across the globe (including a backslide in the U.S.!) 🧵:

📉 The U.S. dropped from 3rd to 9th in our latest survey of global attitudes on #freespeech in 33 countries. @mchangama.bsky.social spoke to Lindsey Reiser at @cbsnews.com about our findings:

🚨We just released our survey on global attitudes toward free speech in over 30 countries. Here’s a sneak peek at some of the results 🧵⬇️⬇️⬇️

Read it all here: www.persuasion.community/p/free-speec...

"The Trump administration has once again shown its lack of guiding principles by criticizing European leaders for limiting free speech while arguing for fewer protections against deportation than are currently afforded to people in much of Europe." - @mchangama.bsky.social at Persuasion

Thread on threats to free speech both in Europe and on this side of the Atlantic.

To read further about the Weimar Fallacy and other lessons from free speech history, you can pre-order the paperback version of @mchangama.bsky.social's book here: www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/jacob...

At The Bedrock Principle, @mchangama.bsky.social explains why this claim is another example of the Weimar Fallacy: www.bedrockprinciple.com/p/face-the-n...

J.D. Vance recently warned about threats to free speech in Europe. @facethenation.bsky.social host Margaret Brennan responded with the claim that "free speech was weaponized to conduct a genocide" in Germany. But did free speech lead to the rise of the Nazis?

Read our perspectives on counterspeech and online hate speech (via @mchangama.bsky.social and @nataliealkiviadou.bsky.social ) in this article from @benjaminvonwyl.bsky.social www.swissinfo.ch/ger/demokrat...

"If the EU wants 'what is illegal offline to be illegal online,' this will be to the detriment of queer people in Hungary — where there is an anti-LGBT law — or those critical of religion in Spain — where blasphemy is a criminal offense."

A prior restraint AND compelled speech. Neat. I guess we're taking First Amendment violations up to 11.

"Instead of upholding the First Amendment, the Trump administration risks turning it into a weapon—one that punishes dissent and protects only those who toe the line."

Read my full analysis at The Bedrock Principle: www.bedrockprinciple.com/p/trumps-fre...