The Institute for Free Speech's Bradley Smith and Brett Nolan join the show to discuss two upcoming Supreme Court arguments involving donor disclosure (First Choice Women's Resource Centers, Inc. v. Platkin) and political party contributions to candidates (National Republican Senatorial Committee v. FEC).

The conversation also explores the broader landscape for political speech and campaign regulation, what legal battles may be next for the Supreme Court, and how both guests found their way into First Amendment advocacy.

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

01:32 What is the Institute for Free Speech?

02:39 Personal paths into free speech work

05:10 First Choice Women's Resource Centers, Inc. v. Platkin

32:08 NRSC v. FEC

51:50 What's next for campaign finance at SCOTUS?

54:58 Outro

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FIRE's Ronnie London and Conor Fitzpatrick join the show to discuss the Supreme Court's oral argument in the conversion therapy case, the Pentagon's new press rules, Indiana University's censorship rampage, and where the situation stands with visa and green card holders who say things the feds don't like.

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

01:19 Chiles v. Salazar, the conversion therapy case

30:03 The Pentagon's new press rules

48:48 What the hell is going on at Indiana University?

55:38 Feds boot noncitizens for Charlie Kirk speech

01:05:02 Outro

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We tackle ten common arguments against free speech. FIRE President and CEO Greg Lukianoff and FIRE Senior Fellow and former ACLU President Nadine Strossen are the co-authors of the new book, "War on Words: 10 Arguments Against Free Speech—And Why They Fail."

Transcript

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

01:18 Book's origins

04:25 Argument #1: Words are violence

20:27 Argument #2: Words are dangerous

25:09 Argument #3: Hate speech isn't free speech

31:06 Argument #4: About shoutdowns

37:18 Argument #5: Free speech is outdated

45:41 Argument #6 Free speech is right-wing

50:14 Argument #7: About that crowded theater and marketplace of ideas

59:27 Argument #9: Misinformation and disinformation

01:03:53 Argument #8: Free speech protects power

01:09:30 Argument #10: About the Holocaust and Rwandan genocide

01:13:35 Outro

Get the Book:Purchase War on Words: 10 Arguments Against Free Speech—And Why They Fail.

Enjoy listening to the podcast? Donate to FIRE today (https://www.thefire.org/) and get exclusive content like member webinars, special episodes, and more. If you became a FIRE Member through a donation to FIRE at thefire.org and would like access to Substack's paid subscriber podcast feed, please email [email protected].

FIRE Senior Scholar Sarah McLaughlin discusses her new book, "Authoritarians in the Academy: How the Internationalization of Higher Education and Borderless Censorship Threaten Free Speech."

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

01:17 Book origins

03:38 How China censored speech on American campuses

18:36 COVID's impact for international students' speech

22:05 What is sensitivity exploitation?

25:35 Free speech at international satellite campuses

31:28 Attempted deportations of Mahmoud Khalil and Rümeysa Öztürk

36:52 Sarah's free speech inspirations: literature and people

About the Guest: Learn more about Sarah McLaughlin and her work.

Get the Book: Purchase Authoritarians in the Academy here.

Read the transcript here: https://www.thefire.org/research-learn/so-speak-transcript-authoritarians-academy

Enjoy listening to the podcast? Donate to FIRE today (https://www.thefire.org/) and get exclusive content like member webinars, special episodes, and more. If you became a FIRE Member through a donation to FIRE at thefire.org and would like access to Substack's paid subscriber podcast feed, please email [email protected].

What is the Federal Communications Commission, and why does its chairman think the agency can regulate Jimmy Kimmel's jokes?

Note: Shortly after recording this episode, Nexstar and Sinclair announced they would return "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" to their stations.

Joining us:

• Anna Gomez, FCC Commissioner

• Ronnie London, FIRE General Counsel

• Bob Corn-Revere, FIRE Chief Counsel

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

04:46 What's the FCC?

07:35 What's the "public interest" standard?

14:20 What is the "fairness doctrine"?

25:21 What is the "broadcast hoax" rule?

28:55 What is "news distortion"?

35:31 Role of network affiliates

41:15 What happens now?

Read the transcript here: https://www.thefire.org/research-learn/so-speak-podcast-transcript-what-going-fcc

Enjoy listening to the podcast? Donate to FIRE today and get exclusive content like member webinars, special episodes, and more. If you became a FIRE Member through a donation to FIRE at thefire.org and would like access to Substack's paid subscriber podcast feed, please email [email protected].

FIRE staff also take your questions on Charlie Kirk's assassination, President Trump's lawsuit against The New York Times, cancel culture, and more.

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

01:42 Attorney General Pam Bondi's comments that "hate speech" is distinct from "free speech"

02:23 Is it OK for the Department of Justice to target people for "hate speech"?

05:42 How have "hate speech" laws played out overseas?

07:19 President Trump's response to Pam Bondi's "hate speech" remarks

08:50 Are "fighting words," "incitement," and "true threats" free speech?

11:22 What about doxxing?

15:15 Is it free speech to celebrate or condone the assassination of Charlie Kirk?

21:52 The termination of k-12 and university faculty in response to their commentary on Kirk's assassination

28:40 Is there a law that might implicate the Discord users who had reason to be aware of malicious intentions the shooter had towards Kirk ahead of the assassination?

30:05 The agency of speakers and those hearing their speech under the incitement standard

31:14 What are the differences between the free speech rights of citizens and non-citizens?

36:20 Does a court filing by President Trump as an individual in the New York Times lawsuit open him up to being deposed about a wide range of behaviors and actions?

37:40 What is the Trump's administration's legal strategy with the New York Times lawsuit?

39:24 What is FIRE doing about private employees being fired for their political commentary?

46:50 What is Charlie Kirk's legacy on free speech?

50:04 What is the difference between the academic protections enjoyed by tenured and non-tenured faculty members?

52:05 Does FIRE trust the Supreme Court to protect free speech?

56:12 How can we prevent capitulation from The New York Times?

59:20 How can ordinary people safely express their opinions on social media and promote civil discourse?

Joining us:

Ronnie London, general counsel

Sarah McLaughlin, senior scholar, global expression

Aaron Terr, director of public advocacy

We're joined by award-winning author, Charles (Charlie) Slack, to discuss his book, Liberty's First Crisis: Adams, Jefferson and the Misfits Who Saved Free Speech.

Slack focuses on the infamous Sedition Act of 1798, which sparked the first major controversy over freedom of speech in America.

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro (including note about Charlie Kirk)

03:59 Book origins

12:05 What were the Alien and Sedition Acts?

16:00 Prosecutions under the Act and their free speech implications

25:35 Free speech during the Revolutionary era

28:14 Adams' perspective on the Sedition Act

46:02 Was Supreme Court Justice Samuel Chase a partisan hack?

53:57 Sedition Act fallout

01:01:02 Outro

Read the transcript: https://www.thefire.org/research-learn/so-speak-podcast-transcript-americas-first-free-speech-crisis-sedition-act-1798

Enjoy listening to the podcast? Donate to FIRE today and get exclusive content like member webinars, special episodes, and more. If you became a FIRE Member through a donation to FIRE at thefire.org and would like access to Substack's paid subscriber podcast feed, please email [email protected].

What are the limits of presidential power? How many days has it been since President Trump's TikTok ban moratorium went into place? What is the state of the conservative legal movement? And where did former FIRE president David French go on his first date?

French and Sarah Isgur of the popular legal podcast "Advisory Opinions" join the show to answer these questions and discuss the few free speech issues where they disagree with FIRE.

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

02:18 Origin story of "Advisory Opinions"

08:15 Disagreements between FIRE and AO

15:04 Why FIRE doesn't editorialize on the content of speech

24:27 Limits of presidential power

43:30 Free speech, the dread of tyrants

51:01 The prosecution of political figures

58:01 Cracker Barrel

01:00:09 State of the conservative legal movement

Enjoy listening to the podcast? Donate to FIRE today and get exclusive content like member webinars, special episodes, and more. If you became a FIRE Member through a donation to FIRE at thefire.org and would like access to Substack's paid subscriber podcast feed, please email [email protected].

We know the First Amendment protects hate speech. But has it always done so? And how have civil rights groups responded when their members are the target of hate speech?

University of Iowa Law Professor Samantha Barbas is the author of a new law review article, "How American Civil Rights Groups Defeated Hate Speech Laws."

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

04:04 "The Birth of a Nation" movie controversy

12:44 Henry Ford's anti-Semitic "Dearborn Independent"

22:41 American Jewish Committee's "quarantining" solution

28:41 ACLU's Eleanor Holmes Norton defending a racist in court

33:42 Racist Senate candidate J.B. Stoner

37:28 Neo-Nazis and Skokie

47:20 Why are college students afraid of saying "the wrong thing?"

52:31 Barbas' favorite free speech literature

53:15 Barbas' free speech hero

Read the transcript here: https://www.thefire.org/research-learn/so-speak-podcast-transcript-civil-rights-hate-speech-and-first-amendment.

Enjoy listening to the podcast? Donate to FIRE today and get exclusive content like member webinars, special episodes, and more. If you became a FIRE Member through a donation to FIRE at thefire.org and would like access to Substack's paid subscriber podcast feed, please email [email protected].

Show notes:

• Morris Ernst, free speech renegade (Barbas' previous So to Speak appearance, July 29, 2021)

• Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969) via FIRE

2025 has not been kind to Harvard.

To date, the Trump administration has revoked nearly $3 billion in research funding to the university, demanding violations of free speech, academic freedom, and institutional autonomy in return for restoring the funding. In response, Harvard filed a lawsuit, raising First Amendment claims.

Helping us unpack all things Harvard are:

• Larry Summers, President Emeritus, professor (Harvard) & advisory council member (FIRE)

• Greg Lukianoff, President & CEO (FIRE)

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

02:32 Harvard's disputes with the Trump administration

08:29 The need for internal reforms at Harvard

42:50 Institutional neutrality debate

46:16 IHRA definition of anti-Semitism

01:01:28 Latest update on potential Harvard-Trump administration settlement

Read the transcript here: https://www.thefire.org/research-learn/so-speak-podcast-transcript-fire-reacts-where-does-harvard-go-here-larry-summers

Enjoy listening to the podcast? Donate to FIRE today and get exclusive content like member webinars, special episodes, and more. If you became a FIRE Member through a donation to FIRE at thefire.org and would like access to Substack's paid subscriber podcast feed, please email [email protected].

Show notes:

• The War on Words: 10 Arguments Against Free Speech—and Why They Fail by Greg Lukianoff & Nadine Strossen (2025)