Tuesday, August 30, 2016
#FreeSpeech in the News: Aug. 30, 2016
As the Citadel of Free Speech here in Cleveland, we work to protect and promote the basis of our democracy by sharing related stories, commentary, and opinions on free speech in the 21st century. Here's what's making the news - and what you should know about - this week.
“One of the main forces governing speech online is the same thing that governs Walter’s speech in his local diner: societal norms.”
Twitter Need to Move on From its “Free Speech” Ideals, Slate
“Yet what is the value of a university education without encountering, reflecting on and debating ideas that differ from the ones that students brought with them to college? The purpose of a university education is to provide the critical pathway by which students can fulfill their potential, change the trajectory of their families, and build healthier can more inclusive societies.”
Free Speech Is the Basis of a True Education, The Wall Street Journal
“The Northwestern State University policy requires students to apply 24-48 hours in advance before holding a public demonstration or assembly, and limits such activities to ‘one, 2-hour time period every 7 days, commencing Monday.’”
Public university grants students two hours of free speech per week, The Washington Times
“Our commitment to academic freedom means that we do not support so-called ‘trigger warnings,’ we do not cancel invited speakers because their topics might prove too controversial, and we do not condone the creation of intellectual ‘safe spaces’ were individuals can retreat from ideas and perspectives at odds with their own.”
U Chicago tells freshmen they won’t get safe spaces or trigger warnings, USA Today College
“When I attended the University of Chicago in the 1980s, I found myself in the midst of an intellectually vibrant community with a cacophony of voices, from Trotskyites to black nationalists to radical feminists to creationists. Then-President Hanna Gray told us that ‘education should not be intended to make people comfortable; it is meant to make them think.’ And it did. Students thought a lot about where they fit in this world of ideas.”
Free speech should not be big news: Jonathan Turley, USA Today
