first amendment

Anti-abortion-rights demonstrators stand outside the U.S. Supreme Court in 2014 after oral arguments over buffer zones around abortion clinics.

Politics & Government

What Free Speech Has To Do With Skim Milk, Condoms And Corporate Political Spending

12:54pm April 05, 2018

Many modern free-speech cases have less to do with citizens speaking to government power than with the reach of businesses and organizations into Americans' lives. We look at a few highlights.

Fane Lozman will make his second appearance before the Supreme Court. This time he has sued the city of Riviera Beach for his arrest at a City Council meeting where he refused to stop talking about government corruption.

The Curious Case Of A Florida Man Who Called Politicians Corrupt, Got Thrown In Jail

9:57am February 27, 2018

by Nina Totenberg

Fane Lozman's second trip to the U.S. Supreme Court could have far-reaching implications for freedom of speech.

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This April 3 photo, taken in Washington, DC, shows President Donald Trump's Twitter feed. Some Twitter users argue Trump is violating the First Amendment by blocking people from his feed after they posted negative comments.

Politics & Government

First Amendment Advocates Charge Trump Can't Block Critics On Twitter

10:02am November 08, 2017

by Laura Sydell

Some First Amendment advocates joined a suit against the president for blocking people from his Twitter account — and they are making a novel argument about the right to communicate in a digital age.

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Anti-Trump protesters chant during an Inauguration Day demonstration in Washington, D.C., in January. A judge has narrowed the Justice Department's warrant for records related to a website used to plan protests.

Judge Limits DOJ's Warrant For Records From Anti-Trump Site

7:52pm October 11, 2017

by Laurel Wamsley

The court's ruling says the government has no right to "rummage through the information" on DreamHost's website to identify "innocent persons" engaged in First Amendment activities.

Football players on the Watkins Mill High Wolverines take a knee during the playing of the National Anthem before a game against the Damascus Hornets at Damascus High School in Damascus, Md.

How Schools Are Dealing With Students' Right To Protest

6:54pm September 29, 2017

by Ariana Figueroa

Under federal and state law, teachers and students do not lose their First Amendment rights when they enter school property. But that hasn't stopped some schools from threatening to punish them.

White supremacists march with tiki torchs through the University of Virginia campus. (Photo by Zach D Roberts/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Science

Study Looks At How People Think About Free Speech

11:26am September 08, 2017

by Shankar Vedantam

Some new research says that many people use free speech arguments only when convenient, and as a cover for their own feelings.

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White nationalist Richard Spencer speaks earlier this month to select media in Alexandria, Va. Spencer is head of the National Policy Institute and self-described creator of the term "alt-right."

Unlikely Allies Join Fight To Protect Free Speech On The Internet

9:17am August 23, 2017

by Laura Sydell

After big tech companies took action to take down white supremacist content, there have been calls for the government to step in to protect free speech from the right and left.

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The Department of Justice has issued a warrant for a web hosting company to turn over all records related to the website of #DisruptJ20, a group that organized actions to disrupt President Trump's inauguration in January.

DOJ Demands Files On Anti-Trump Activists, And A Web Hosting Company Resists

10:20pm August 15, 2017

by Laurel Wamsley

Legal experts called the government's demand for information unusually broad. DreamHost says the warrant would require it to hand over logs of 1.3 million visits to its customer's website.

Following the weekend's violent clashes around a white nationalist demonstration in Charlottesville, Va., some are asking what authorities could have done differently. Above, demonstrators and counter-protestors face off at the entrance to Emancipation Pa

National

Charlottesville Violence Highlights Cities' Struggle To Balance Rights And Safety

6:43pm August 14, 2017

by Laurel Wamsley

In the wake of fierce brawls and a car ramming people in the streets of a usually quiet college town, many are asking what authorities could do differently to prevent such violence in the future.

Vice Media co-founder and conservative speaker Gavin McInnes reads a speech written by Ann Coulter to a crowd during a conservative rally in Berkeley, Calif., on April 27. Coulter canceled a planned appearance at the University of California, Berkeley, sa

States Consider Legislation To Protect Free Speech On Campus

8:31pm May 05, 2017

by Samantha Raphelson

On college campuses across the country, there is a pattern of violence in response to provocative speakers. Now, states are considering a model bill to protect free speech on campus.

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