Free Speech

Egypt's Jon Stewart Says He Won't Back Down Amid Charges

Leila Fadel — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 11:20:00 +0000

It's 9:30 p.m. on a Friday night, and Bassem Youssef's show is on TV screens at cafes throughout downtown Cairo.

It's the Egyptian political satirist's first show since he was summoned to the prosecutor general's office to answer questions about the jokes he makes on TV.

On Its 7th Birthday, Is Twitter Still The 'Free Speech Party'?

Laura Sydell — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 13:23:00 +0000

It's hard to believe, but seven years ago no one had ever heard of a tweet. Thursday is the anniversary of the first tweet from Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey. It wasn't profound. He wrote:

Since then the social media company has been an important communication tool in everything from the Arab Spring and Occupy Wall Street, to its use as a megaphone for celebrities. Over the years, its relationship to its free speech principles has changed.

From Trivial To Global Town Hall

When it was founded, Twitter seemed rather trivial.

John Kerry To German Students: Americans Have 'Right To Be Stupid'

Eyder Peralta — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 19:33:00 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HiuV8vF8K_s

Court's Swearing Decision Goes In Favor Of N.Y. Man

Fri, 08 Feb 2013 12:39:00 +0000

Transcript

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Good morning. I'm Steve Inskeep, with a story of the power of words. Trevis D. Baker swore at a cop in Rochester. Police arrested him, but New York State's highest court threw out the charges. He has a First Amendment right to swear, so long as it's not a challenge to fight. Because the arrest was invalid, the court disallowed a search police conducted afterward.

So Mr. Baker walks away with freedom of speech, and also free of charges that he possessed 25 bags of crack cocaine. It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

French Twitter Lawsuit Pits Free Speech Against Hate Speech

Eleanor Beardsley — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 21:57:00 +0000

A French judge will decide this week if Twitter must hand over the identities of users sending anti-Semitic tweets. The case, brought against Twitter by a Jewish student organization, pits America's free speech guarantees against Europe's laws banning hate speech.

The controversy began in October, when the French Union of Jewish Students threatened to sue Twitter to get the names of people posting anti-Semitic tweets with the hashtag #unbonjuif, or "a good Jew."

"If I type 'un bon Juif' ...