Twitter Sues Texas Attorney General For Violating Company’s First Amendment Rights
The lawsuit claims Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton used his official position to retaliate against the company by issuing a civil investigative demand (CID) seeking documents related to the company’s content moderation policies. Twitter’s lawyers said that Paxton’s actions infringed on the company’s First Amendment right to “make decisions about what content to disseminate through its platform.”
Teacher Guide: Access to Courts and Court Records
Public access to the judicial system is a necessary element in a constitutional democracy. The idea behind “We the People”—the notion that the people are sovereign—assumes that the people govern their institutions. This teachers guide discusses access to courts, including how court access is faring during the COVID-19 crisis; the development of access to criminal trials; the importance of both the First Amendment right of access and the Sixth Amendment right to a public trial; the clash between the First Amendment and the Sixth Amendment concerns over a fair trial; the qualified right of access to civil court proceedings; the dangers of “secret justice”; and cameras in the courts.
Watch: Open Courts & Racial Justice
The world will be watching when the trial over George Floyd's killing opens this month. Listen to a panel discussion on how the First Amendment’s promise of public trials is playing out in an American courtroom amid the pandemic.
Court Tosses Trump Campaign’s Defamation Suit Against the New York Times
The suit against the Times was part of a string of lawsuits the Trump campaign filed in 2020 against media companies. So far, two have been dismissed and one remains ongoing.
Rep. Eric Swalwell Claims Donald Trump and Allies Incited Capitol Riot in New Lawsuit
Much like the case that was laid out during Trump’s second impeachment trial, Swalwell’s lawsuit also asks the judge to consider Trump’s behavior in the months leading up to the Capitol attack. He argues that Trump’s speech on the day of the attack, in which he urged supporters to march to the Capitol, should be interpreted as a last-ditch effort to undo the election results.
Dare to Speak: Free Speech in Our Troubled Times
Watch the full video interview between writer Salman Rushdie and human rights advocate and PEN America CEO Suzanne Nossel as they discuss today's most pressing free speech issues, including the monopoly of social media giants and the rise in global attacks on free expression.
Nebraska Student Journalists Challenge School’s Prior Review Policy
For almost 50 years, the Westside Wired, Westside High School's student newspaper, has been a leading example in independent, timely hard-hitting student journalism. Now, students say a new prior review policy is threatening that legacy.
Federal Judge Tosses Devin Nunes’ $435 Million Lawsuit Against CNN
The judge wrote that California Representative Devin Nunes failed to state adequate claims and to request a retraction before he filed his lawsuit against CNN.