Soraya Ferdman
Contributor
Zuckerberg

Zuckerberg Defends Facebook’s Policies in Speech at Georgetown University

By invoking the United State’s unique commitment to protecting free expression, Zuckerberg sought to draw attention towards the positive aspects of social media.

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Sandy Hook

Jury Awards Sandy Hook Father $450,000 in Defamation Suit against Conspiracy Theorist

“We went in thinking we had to prove that the death certificate was real. We ended up having to prove not only that, but that a little baby was born to these two parents,” Pozner’s attorney, Jacob Zimmerman, told First Amendment Watch.

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Book burning

Students at Georgia Southern University Burn Book By Latina Author

After disagreeing with the way Jennine Capó Crucet’s novel, “Make Your Home Among Strangers,” presented white privilege, a group of students at Georgia Southern University decided to burn her book. The incident serves as an interesting example of a form of expression that is at once protected speech—symbolic speech—and a symbol of censorship.

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Denver Police Agree to First Amendment Training after Unlawful Arrest of Journalist

The 1st, 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th, and 11th U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals have all held that the First Amendment protects people who record police officers performing their official duties in public.

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Devin Nunes Files Defamation Complaint against Reporter Ryan Lizza

The lawsuit argues that Lizza's widely read article, "Devin Nunes’s Family Farm is Hiding a Politically Explosive Secret," is a "legion of lies" and that Lizza published it with the specific intent to harm the congressman’s reputation.

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Appeals Court Rules University of Michigan’s Bias Response Team Indirectly Chills Speech

"Even if an official lacks actual power to punish," the appeals court argued, "the threat of punishment from a public official who appears to have punitive authority can be enough to produce an objective chill."

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Drones Thailand

Visual Journalists Challenge Texas Law Restricting Drones

Facing fees up to $10,000 for publishing photographs and videos captured with drones, the group say the law has deterred journalists from reporting on newsworthy events of public interest.

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Betsy DeVos

Department of Education Letter Threatens UNC and Duke with Funding Cuts

In an unprecedented move, the Education Department has ordered a Middle East studies program at Duke and UNC to change its curriculum or else risk losing Title VI funding.

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