This column expresses the views of Gene Policinski, senior fellow for the First Amendment, Freedom Forum. Student journalists should be able to count on the First Amendment as much as their professional counterparts — and not just because their work provides information along with a good learning experience.
Ferlinghetti: A Free Speech Hero of the Beat Generation
This column expresses the views of Gene Policinski, senior fellow for the First Amendment, Freedom Forum. There may be no two personalities more distant and yet more prominent in their own ways in the 20th century world of free speech than conservative talk radio’s Rush Limbaugh and the owner of San Francisco’s famed City Lights […]
Limbaugh: “People Don’t Have to Listen to You” – But Millions Did
This column expresses the views of Gene Policinski, senior fellow for the First Amendment, Freedom Forum. Whether you were a fan or a critic of Rush Limbaugh – and there were millions of both – the First Amendment was his touchstone through a nearly four-decade career as conservatism’s most prominent media voice.
Free Online Course: The Civil Rights Movement and the First Amendment
This column expresses the views of Robert Bickel, professor emeritus of law at Stetson University College of Law, and Gene Policinski, senior fellow for the First Amendment, Freedom Forum. When the Supreme Court declared in Brown v. Board of Education in 1954 that the segregationist doctrine of “separate but equal” was unconstitutional, our government, our […]
Trump’s defense: Election claims, rally remarks were free speech, not ‘incitement’ to violence
This column expresses the views of Gene Policinski, senior fellow for the First Amendment, Freedom Forum. Let’s look at the First Amendment argument being raised as part of former President Donald J. Trump’s defense next week, in his second impeachment trial in the U.S. Senate.
Amanda Gorman’s Lyrical Promise of the First Amendment
This column expresses the views of Gene Policinski, senior fellow for the First Amendment, Freedom Forum. We should revisit again and again the stirring call during President Joe Biden’s inauguration to put the power and meaning of our First Amendment freedoms at center stage in the 21st century.
Post-Capitol riot: Cellphones, selfies – and Orwell
This column expresses the views of Gene Policinski, senior fellow for the First Amendment, Freedom Forum. A nod to “1984” author George Orwell: We have met Big Brother and often, he is us.
The First Amendment Right To Protest Has Limits
This column expresses the views of Gene Policinski, senior fellow for the First Amendment, Freedom Forum. We often use our free speech rights at the top of our lungs and in public spaces to protest loudly, proudly and prominently.
Capitol Rioters Trampled On First Amendment Freedoms
This column expresses the views of Gene Policinski, senior fellow for the First Amendment, Freedom Forum. Five people died as a result of Wednesday’s mob assault on the U.S. Capitol – and their deaths will linger in the nation’s conscience.
Protest Is How We Talk To Ourselves As A Nation — But Violence Isn’t Protest
This column expresses the views of Gene Policinski, senior fellow for the First Amendment, Freedom Forum. Assembling to protest is our right under the First Amendment — it’s how we talk to each other as a nation.