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Hoover Institution Senior Fellow Eugene Volokh is one of the country’s foremost experts on the 1st Amendment and legal issues surrounding free speech. Jane Bambauer is a distinguished professor of law and journalism at the University of Florida. On Free Speech Unmuted, Volokh and Bambauer unpack and analyze the current issues and controversies concerning the First Amendment, censorship, the press, social media, and the proverbial town square. They’ll also explain in plain English the often confusing legalese around these issues and explain how the courts and government agencies interpret the Constitution and new laws being written, passed, and decided will affect their everyday lives.
Episodes
Thursday Jan 30, 2025
Thursday Jan 30, 2025
The Constitution generally covers only government action; if a private university expels students for their speech, or a private shopping mall forbids leafletting, or a private employer fires an employee for backing some candidate, that doesn’t violate the First Amendment. But state laws in roughly half the states do limit some such private restrictions on speech and political activity, especially ones imposed by private employers, much as federal law limits private employers’ restriction on their employees’ religious activity. Should there be more such laws? Fewer? Eugene Volokh and Jane Bambauer talk about this, and more.
Recorded on January 28, 2025.