So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast

Ep. 226: ‘Shouting fire,’ deepfake laws, tenured professors, and mask bans

Oct 10, 2024

Joining the discussion are Aaron Terr, FIRE's director of Public Advocacy; Connor Murnane, Campus Advocacy chief of staff; and Adam Goldstein, vice president of strategic initiatives. They unpack Minnesota Governor Tim Walz’s controversial views on hate speech and the limits of free expression. The team dives into California's new deepfake laws and their implications for misinformation. They also shed light on the challenges tenured professors face when expressing unpopular views, alongside the debates around mask mandates and individual rights.

01:05:35

Creator website

Episode guests

Adam Goldstein

Connor Murnane

Aaron Terr

AI Summary

AI Chapters

Episode notes

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Governor Tim Walz's claim that hate speech lacks First Amendment protection showcases a frequent misunderstanding of free speech rights in America.

California's new deepfake laws raise concerns about the balance between combating misinformation and protecting free expression in political discourse.

Disciplinary actions against tenured professors reflect a growing chill on academic freedom and expression, illustrating risks of censorship in university settings.

Deep dives

Tim Walz's Misconception of Hate Speech

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz's recent comments inaccurately claim that there is no First Amendment protection for hate speech, evoking the infamous 'shouting fire in a crowded theater' analogy. This analogy is frequently misapplied to justify censorship, despite its origins in a case about limiting speech that incites panic. The Supreme Court has not defined hate speech as an exception to free speech rights, illustrating that expressions deemed hateful are indeed protected under the First Amendment. The confrontation surrounding these comments highlights the ongoing misunderstanding around what actually constitutes protected speech and the implications of censoring ideas that may be widely disagreed with.

Intro

2min

The Limits of Free Speech

5min

Understanding Free Speech and Hate Speech

8min

Navigating Free Speech and Deepfakes

17min

The Tensions of AI Regulation and Academic Freedom

13min

The Crucible of Ideas: Free Expression in Academia

8min

Balancing Freedoms: Education and Mask Regulations

10min

Exploring Anonymous Speech and Its Constitutional Challenges

4min

The FIRE team discusses Tim Walz’s controversial comments on hate speech and “shouting fire in a crowded theater.” We also examine California’s AI deepfake laws, the punishment of tenured professors, and mask bans.

Joining us are:

Aaron Terr, FIRE’s director of Public Advocacy;

Connor Murnane, FIRE’s Campus Advocacy chief of staff; and

Adam Goldstein, FIRE’s vice president of strategic initiatives.

Read the transcript.

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

01:51 Tim Walz’s comments on hate speech and “shouting fire”

15:36 California’s AI deepfake laws

32:05 Tenured professors punished for expression

54:27 Nassau County’s mask ban

1:04:39 Outro

Show notes:

Court cases:

Schenck v. United States (1919)

Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969)

National Socialist Party of America v. Village of Skokie (1977)

Texas v. Johnson (1989)

Snyder v. Phelps (2011)

Matal v. Tam (2017)

Virginia v. Black (2003)

NAACP v. Alabama (1958)

Kohls v. Bonta (this suit challenges the constitutionality of AB 2839 and AB 2655) (2024)

G.B. et al. v. Nassau County et al. (this class action lawsuit alleges Nassau County's Mask Transparency Act is unconstitutional and discriminates against people with disabilities) (2024)

Legislation:

AB 2839

AB 2655

AB 1831

Title VI (Civil Rights Act of 1964)

Section 230 (Communications Decency Act of 1996)

Articles/Tweets:

“This is amazing😂” Elon Musk via X (2024)

“BREAKING: The Babylon Bee has obtained this exclusive, official, 100% real Gavin Newsom election ad.” The Babylon Bee via X (2024)

“The 1912 war on fake photos.” Pessimists Archive via Substack (2024)

“Professor fired for porn hobby vows to take university to court.” FIRE (2024)

“Amy Wax is academic freedom's canary in the coal mine.” FIRE (2024)