“Existence is struggle,” says Marc Steiner. “It always has been, and always will be.”

In this podcast series, we’ve looked at the attacks on free speech rights today in the United States. We looked at the history and how movements and organizations have stood up for and exercised free speech in their work. We looked at how social media, AI, and disinformation are undermining our free speech, and at how people are responding in the United States and abroad.

In the final episode of this series, we’re focusing on what free speech means within the context of the life of one person who has been through it all — co-host Marc Steiner. He turned 80 earlier this year. 
In this episode, Michael Fox sits down with Marc to discuss all of these incredible layers of his life,  from fighting civil rights and community organizing to underground newspapers, street theater, education, and journalism. What do they all mean for him, how do they all add up to nearly seven decades standing up and fighting for free speech, and how they fit into the battle for free speech today?

“You have to step back and really listen to what people are saying so you can bring out their truth so others can wrestle with it,” says Marc. “And if they need confronting in their process, you confront it and push back. Which is why when I think about what we do, how important it is — We have a critical role to play in bringing understanding to the world. The truth lives in every corner. And you have to listen. No one has a hold on it.”

In our conversation, Marc says right now the battle for free speech is more important than ever. 
“I think we’re politically facing the most dangerous moment in my lifetime,” says Marc, “where the right is seizing power across the country — the racist right is seizing power. And that now the battle for free speech is more critical than ever. We cannot let them take it away. We have to stand up to that.”

The Battle for Free Speech Podcast is a production of The Real News Network.

Hosted by Michael Fox and Marc Steiner. Theme music by Michael Fox, Jordan Klein and Daniel Nuñez. Other music from Blue Dot Sessions and Epidemic Sound. Production and Sound Design by Michael Fox and Stephen Frank. Editorial support by Kayla Rivara. Research by Ben Schweiger. 

Guests 

• Marc Steiner

Resources 

• You can hear more from Marc on the Marc Steiner Show on The Real News Network.
• You can see Marc’s archives at the Center for Emerging Media.
• Marc Steiner’s Peabody-award winning documentary series, Just Words.
• Marc Steiner’s documentary series Shared Weight, which looks back at the Vietnam War and its legacy.

Many thanks to everyone who has supported this show.

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