Will Creeley

Ari Cohn, lead counsel for tech policy at FIRE, Robert Shibley, special counsel for campus advocacy, and Will Creeley, legal director, dive into pressing free speech issues. They tackle the TikTok ban and its implications on First Amendment rights, discuss mandatory DEI statements, and dig into age verification laws affecting online speech. The trio also unpacks SLAPP suits and defamation settlements, providing insights on how corporate decisions impact journalism. Throughout, they emphasize the crucial need for educating the next generation on free speech rights.

Will Creeley, legal director at FIRE, and Conor Fitzpatrick, supervising senior attorney at FIRE, dive into the intricate tensions between free speech and institutional pressures. They discuss Columbia University's controversial response to federal funding cuts over anti-Semitism allegations, the implications of the Mahmoud Khalil deportation case, and the chilling effects of DEI policies on dissent in academia. The conversation also touches on the risks of using funding to control political narratives and the essential role of due process in safeguarding civil liberties.