In America Talk Isn’t Cheap, It’s Free

The First Amendment Is for Everyone—Which Makes a Mess

The First Amendment protects you. The First Amendment also protects your enemies. While the volume of today’s battles may be louder, the right to free speech remains a foundational aspect of American democracy. That was the conclusion of a panel of experts assembled at the ASU California Center in downtown L.A. for the Zócalo/ASU Cronkite School event “Does the First Amendment Still Protect Free Speech?”

Los Angeles Times editorial writer Carla Hall, who moderated the discussion, kicked it off with the words of University of Michigan legal scholar Catharine A. MacKinnon, …

Only You Can Defeat Vladimir Putin

Russian Interference With America Is Profound and Systematic, So the Best Self-Defense Is We, the People

Vladimir Putin has done a masterful job of sowing hatred and confusion in the West. By tampering with elections, hijacking social media platforms, and cranking out reams of bogus conspiracy …

This Isn’t a First Amendment Issue, Twitter

Just Because Governing Online Speech Is Hard Doesn’t Mean It’s Forbidden by the Constitution

Earlier this month, Twitter announced that it would be using new tools to curb hate speech and harassment on its site. The news came on the heels of a …

Was Fred Phelps Democracy’s Necessary Evil?

You Don’t Have to Like the Man or the Westboro Baptist Church, But Their Antics Strengthened the First Amendment for All of Us

It has been written that the safeguards of liberty have often been forged in controversies involving not very nice people. If that is true—and the facts support the premise—then the …