Covering Protests: New Challenges for a New Era
Join First Amendment Watch at New York University and the Center for Journalism Ethics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in a conversation about how reporters, photographers, and editors should weigh their responsibility to report on public matters balanced against ethical concerns such as the privacy and safety of their subjects.
Arizona Lawmakers Move Forward on Anti-Protest Bill
Arizona lawmakers are considering a bill, HB 2309, that would heighten the penalties for a number of charges associated with protests, and create a new charge for behavior deemed “violent or disorderly assembly.”
Are Defamation Lawsuits Being Used to Rein in Disinformation Spread by News Outlets?
Using defamation suits to combat misinformation has some free speech advocates uneasy, as the First Amendment provides broad protections for news organizations.
Local Oregon Newspaper Wins Major Public Records Battle
The Malheur Enterprise, a local newspaper, requested documents last October as part of its ongoing investigation into whether a state legislator was using his official position to help his private business. On February 5th, the county's district attorney ordered the government agency to disclose the unredacted documents.
Fox’s lawyers argue that they had a First Amendment privilege to report newsworthy allegations–even false ones–in a neutral way. They also claim that Smartmatic failed to establish a key requirement of a defamation claim—that Piro, Dobbs, and Bartiromo acted with “actual malice.”
Justice Department Drops Case Against Former Aide to Melania Trump
Filed in October 2020, the lawsuit claimed that Ms. Wolkoff's tell-all memoir had violated a non-disclosure agreement she signed. The Justice Department abandoned the case on February 8th.
Authors Share Excerpts on Free Speech: Ian Rosenberg and The Marketplace of Ideas
In "The Fight for Free Speech," Ian Rosenberg distills the last century of First Amendment law into ten critical issues. The first chapter, excerpted here, traces the story of several anarchists who were tried under the Espionage Act of 1917 for distributing anti-war pamphlets.
Student Sues University of Tennessee for Violating Her Free Speech Rights
On February 3rd, a University of Tennessee student sued the school for violating her First Amendment right to free speech. Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee Western Division, Kimberly Diei says that she was nearly expelled from the university’s graduate pharmacy program for her social media posts.