So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast

His office door was vandalized. He was accused of causing "harm" to his "college community." There was even a demand — supported by dozens of his faculty peers — to review his tenure.Why? Because he wrote an op-ed in The New York Times arguing for more viewpoint diversity at his campus. On today's episode of So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast, Sarah Lawrence College professor Samuel Abrams joins us to discuss the response to his op-ed and the future of academic freedom, viewpoint diversity, and the role of faculty in college life.Also joining us is FIRE President & CEO Greg Lukianoff, author of The New York Times bestseller "The Coddling of the American Mind," due out in paperback edition on Aug. 20. Show notes: "Think professors are liberal? Try school administrators" by Samuel Abrams "When students want to review a tenured professor" "DEMANDS: Westlands sit-in 50 years of shame" "Faculty members need to reassert themselves as the people who direct discourse on campus (opinion)" by Samuel Abrams Viewpoint diversity on campus: A Heterodox Academy & FIRE panel discussion www.sotospeakpodcast.com Follow us on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/freespeechtalk Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sotospeakpodcast Email us: sotospeak@thefire.org

Community libraries have always been a target for would-be censors — and the past few months are no exception. On today's episode of So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast, we explore past and present challenges to library content, and the unique role libraries play historically as bastions for free inquiry. We are joined by James LaRue, an award-winning librarian and the former director of the American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom and the Freedom to Read Foundation. Show notes: Podcast transcript Doane University punishes librarian who displayed historical blackface photo University of Central Arkansas administration removes pro-LGBTQ Lady Gaga quote from Library sign www.sotospeakpodcast.com Follow us on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/freespeechtalk Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sotospeakpodcast Email us: sotospeak@thefire.org

The Constitution grants Congress the power "[t]o promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries." However, figuring out how Congress actually does this can be confusing. Copyrights, trademarks, patents, trade secrets, fair use? What do they all mean? Today's episode of So to Speak is all about simplifying intellectual property law for you — and explaining why free speech advocates should care about it. We are joined by FIRE Program Officer Adam Goldstein, who helps us break it all down. A video of this interview can be found on FIRE's YouTube channel. Podcast transcript. Adam's recommended additional reading: The Pre-History of Fair Use by Matthew Sag 'The Wind Done Gone' on Trial (transcript) 'Exploring the Bounds of Fair Use: Graham v. Prince' by Ayesha Syed www.sotospeakpodcast.com Follow us on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/freespeechtalk Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sotospeakpodcast Email us: sotospeak@thefire.org

On today's episode of So to Speak, we are joined by Williams College Professor of Biology Luana Maroja. Professor Maroja's experience growing up under a dictatorship in Brazil led her to become an outspoken advocate for free speech at Williams College and a skeptic of the idea that words are violence. Show notes: Podcast transcript Relevant writings from Professor Maroja: "Freedom of speech at Williams College: Are the walls closing in?" "Standing with the free exchange of ideas: Understanding the Faculty Petition and the Chicago Statement" "In support of free speech: What we can learn from exposure to multiple ideas" "Refuting claims of institutional violence: Analyzing evidence of racism at the College" www.sotospeakpodcast.com Follow us on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/freespeechtalk Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sotospeakpodcast Email us: sotospeak@thefire.org

On today's episode of So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast, we are joined by Wen Fa, an attorney with the Pacific Legal Foundation who regularly litigates free speech cases. One of his most high-profile cases was the 2018 Supreme Court case Minnesota Voters Alliance v. Mansky, dealing with a polling-place dress code in Minnesota. Show notes: Minnesota Voters Alliance v. Mansky Ostrewich v. Trautman Kotler v. Webb www.sotospeakpodcast.com Follow us on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/freespeechtalk Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sotospeakpodcast Email us: sotospeak@thefire.org

"I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness." So begins Allen Ginsberg's famous poem "Howl." You might be familiar with Allen Ginsberg. You might be familiar with the poem. But chances are you don't know about the efforts in San Francisco in 1957 to censor the poem. On today's episode of So to Speak, we discuss those efforts with distinguished First Amendment scholar and recurring So to Speak guest Ronald K.L. Collins. He is the co-author, with David M. Skover, of the new book, "The People v. Ferlinghetti: The Fight to Publish Allen Ginsberg's HOWL," which recounts the story behind the publication of "Howl" and the courageous fight against its censorship. Show notes: Video of this podcast conversation "Howl" by Allen Ginsberg Allen Ginsberg reads "Howl," (Big Table Chicago Reading, 1959) "The People v. Ferlinghetti: The Fight to Publish Allen Ginsberg's HOWL" Ronald K.L. Collins' First Amendment News www.sotospeakpodcast.com Follow us on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/freespeechtalk Like us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/sotospeakpodcast Email us: sotospeak@thefire.org

On today's episode of So to Speak, we sit down with Cato Institute Senior Fellow Mustafa Akyol to discuss threats to freedom of thought and expression around the world, with a particular focus on situations in Turkey and China. Akyol has been described by CNN's Fareed Zakaria as "Turkey's finest political analyst." Prior to joining Cato, he was a senior fellow at The Freedom Project at Wellesley College, where he learned a thing or two about illiberalism in America. He is also a regular contributing opinion writer for The New York Times. Show notes: Podcast transcript Bios and bibliographies: http://www.mustafaakyol.org/, https://www.cato.org/people/mustafa-akyol, https://www.nytimes.com/column/mustafa-akyol FIRE Investigates: An (il)liberal arts education at Wellesley College "China's Gulag for Muslims" "One Month, 500,000 Face Scans: How China is Using A.I. to Profile a Minority" "The New Gulag Archipelago: How China "Reeducates" the Uyghurs and Why the World Should Be Alarmed" (Video of Cato Institute panel) www.sotospeakpodcast.comFollow us on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/freespeechtalk Like us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/sotospeakpodcast Email us: sotospeak@thefire.org

On today's episode of So to Speak, we ask the question, "can free speech be progressive?" Our guest is Louis Michael Seidman. He is the Carmack Waterhouse Professor of Constitutional Law at Georgetown Law and the author of the much-discussed 2018 Columbia Law Review article "Can Free Speech Be Progressive?" Click here for a transcript of the podcast. www.sotospeakpodcast.com Follow us on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/freespeechtalk Like us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/sotospeakpodcast Email us: sotospeak@thefire.org

On today's episode of So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast, we speak with Techdirt.com founder and editor Mike Masnick. Since founding Techdirt in 1997, Masnick has written nearly 50,000 blog posts for the publication and covered many of tech's hottest free speech controversies. He even coined the phrase "Streisand Effect." In this conversation, we discuss some of the issues Masnick has recently written about for Techdirt, including defamation lawsuits and content moderation. We also ask Mike about the founding of Techdirt, the culture for free speech in Silicon Valley, the fear surrounding new technologies, and, of course, the story behind the Streisand Effect. www.sotospeakpodcast.com Follow us on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/freespeechtalk Like us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/sotospeakpodcast Email us: sotospeak@thefire.org

On today's episode of So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast, FIRE staffers discuss our 2019 list of the 10 Worst Colleges for Free Speech. Participants in this show are: Nico Perrino, host of So to Speak, director of communications Will Creeley, senior vice president of legal and public advocacy Adam Steinbaugh, director of FIRE's Individual Rights Defense Program Sarah McLaughlin, senior program officer for legal and public advocacy www.sotospeakpodcast.com Follow us on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/freespeechtalk Like us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/sotospeakpodcast Email us: sotospeak@thefire.org