TikTok Sues US to Block Law That Could Ban the Social Media Platform

The platform and its Chinese parent company argue that the law vaguely paints it as a threat to national security to get around the First Amendment.

Panel Discussion: Leading Experts on Technology’s Impact on the First Amendment

Moderator Bruce Brown, executive director of the Reporters Committee for the Freedom of the Press, was joined on stage by Jameel Jaffer, executive director of the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University; Floyd Abrams, senior counsel at Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP; and Lyrissa Lidsky, professor at University of Florida Levin College of Law.

Lies: A Conversation About Free Speech With Salman Rushdie, Jameel Jaffer, and Larry Siems

Join us on Tuesday, April 19th at 5 p.m. EST for a lively and provocative discussion about lies and disinformation—their effect on a representative democracy and the avenues available to combat them consistent with America’s free speech principles.

Do Twitter and Other Social Media Platform Bans on Trump Violate the First Amendment?

Twitter, Facebook, and a host of other privately-held companies have imposed bans on President Donald J. Trump, believing that his incendiary comments on January 6, 2021, helped fan the flames of outrage that resulted in an assault on the Capitol. Trump and others have decried the social media blackout as a direct assault on conservative points of view, and as a draconian targeting of only certain types of speech.

UK Judge Refuses to Extradite Julian Assange to the U.S. to Face Espionage Charges

A British judge refused the United State’s request to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange after finding there was a “substantial” risk that he would harm himself. “I am satisfied that, in these harsh conditions, Mr. Assange’s mental health would deteriorate, causing him to commit suicide with the single-minded determination of his autism spectrum disorder,” District Judge Vanessa Baraitser said in a ruling released on January 4th.

Trump Signs Executive Order Essentially Banning U.S. Companies from Working with TikTok

The order prohibits American companies from doing business with TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, a move experts say would eventually prevent Americans from using the app. Both the American Civil Liberties Union and the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University warned the White House’s efforts to cut ties with Chinese social media companies violate the First Amendment rights of U.S. users. 

Trump Signs Order Curtailing Protections for Social Media Companies

On May 28th, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that aims to roll back legal protections for social media platforms. His order was immediately met with withering criticism from First Amendment experts.

Federal Appeals Court Affirms Lower Court Ruling That Trump Can’t Block Critics on Twitter

A federal appeals court ruled that President Trump’s Twitter account is a public forum, and his practice of blocking critics violates the First Amendment. The decision arose from a July 2017 suit filed in U. S District Court for the Southern District of New York by seven Twitter users who had been blocked after they made critical remarks about Trump and/or his policies. The critics, represented by Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, sued Trump and Daniel Scavino, the White House’s Director of Social Media, for violating their First Amendment rights.