Ep. 245: The Supreme Court's decision in Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton
So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast
Release Date: 06/27/2025
Ep. 257: Conversion therapy at the Supreme Court
So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast
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 Enjoy listening to the...
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Ep. 256: Ten arguments against free speech
So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast
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.” 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25:09 Argument #3: Hate speech isn’t free speech 31:06 Argument #4: About shoutdowns 37:18 Argument #5: Free speech is outdated 45:41 Argument #6 Free speech is right-wing 50:14 Argument #7:...
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Ep. 255: Authoritarians in the Academy
So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast
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...
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Ep. 254: What is going on with the FCC?
So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast
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: , FCC Commissioner , FIRE General Counsel , 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...
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Ep. 253: Pam Bondi says hate speech is not free speech — is she right?
So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast
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...
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Ep. 252: America’s first free speech crisis — the Sedition Act of 1798
So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast
We’re joined by award-winning author, , to discuss his book, . Slack focuses on the infamous , 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:...
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Ep. 251: Free speech and ‘the executive power’ with Advisory Opinions
So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast
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 go on his first date? French and of the popular legal podcast “” 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...
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Ep. 250: Civil rights, hate speech, and the First Amendment
So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast
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, “.” 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...
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Ep. 249: FIRE Reacts — Where does Harvard go from here? With Larry Summers
So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast
2025 has not been kind to Harvard. To date, the Trump administration , demanding violations of free speech, academic freedom, and institutional autonomy in return for restoring the funding. In response, Harvard , raising First Amendment claims. Helping us unpack all things Harvard are: , President Emeritus, professor (Harvard) & advisory council member (FIRE) , 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...
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Ep. 248: Commercial speech and the First Amendment
So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast
Imagine the government forcing you to label your all-natural milk product as “imitation.” Florida tried to make one dairy farm do just that, sparking a First Amendment question: Where’s the line between a business’s right to speak and protecting consumers from deception? In this episode, we explore how far free speech protections go for commercial speech with: , managing attorney (Institute for Justice) , chief counsel (FIRE) , Thomas M. Siebel senior fellow (Hoover Institution, Stanford) Timestamps: 00:00 Intro 05:03 What exactly is commercial speech? 08:25 The...
info_outlineFIRE staff responds to the Court's decision in Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton that addresses a Texas law requiring age verification for accessing certain sexual material online.
Joining us:
Will Creeley — Legal director
Bob Corn-Revere — Chief counsel
Ronnie London — General counsel
Timestamps:
01:21 How the case wound up at the Supreme Court
06:57 Bob’s experience with arguing strict scrutiny in the courts
09:32 Ronnie’s perspective on the ruling
10:22 Brick + mortar stores vs. online sites
12:07 Has the Court established a new category of partially protected speech?
13:36 What speech is still subject to strict scrutiny after the ruling?
15:55 What does it mean to address the “work as a whole” in the internet context?
17:24 What modifications to the ruling, if any, would have satisfied FIRE?
18:06 What are the alternatives to address the internet’s risks toward minors?
20:16 For non-lawyer Americans, what is the best normative argument against the ruling?
22:38 Why is this ruling a “canary in the coal mine?”
23:36 How is age verification really about identity verification?
24:42 Why did the Court assume the need to protect children without citing any scientific findings in its ruling?
26:17 Does the ruling allow for more identity-based access barriers to lawful online speech?
28:04 Will Americans have to show ID to get into a public library?
29:30 Why does stare decisis seem to mean little to nothing to the Court?
32:08 Will there be a problem with selective enforcement of content-based restrictions on speech?
34:12 Could the ruling spark a patchwork of state laws that create digital borders?
36:26 Is there any other instance where the Court has used intermediate scrutiny in a First Amendment case?
37:29 Is the Court going to keep sweeping content-based statutes in the “incidental effect on speech” bucket?
38:14 Is sexual speech considered obscene?
40:33 How does the ruling affect adult content on mainstream social media platforms like Reddit and X?
43:27 Where does the ruling leave us on age verification laws?
Read the transcript here: https://www.thefire.org/research-learn/fire-reacts-supreme-courts-decision-free-speech-coalition-v-paxton
Show notes:
- Supreme Court ruling: https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/24pdf/23-1122_3e04.pdf
- FIRE statement on FSC v. Paxton ruling: https://www.thefire.org/news/fire-statement-free-speech-coalition-v-paxton-upholding-age-verification-adult-content
- FIRE’s brief for the Fifth Circuit: https://www.thefire.org/news/supreme-court-agrees-review-fifth-circuit-decision-upholding-texas-adult-content-age
- FIRE’s amicus brief in support of petitioners and reversal: https://www.thefire.org/research-learn/amicus-brief-support-petitioners-and-reversal-free-speech-coalition-v-paxton