So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast

Recent protests in Iran have drawn renewed attention to dissent under the country's authoritarian government. The demonstrations have been met with mass arrests, internet restrictions, and even accusations of murder. 
While large-scale demonstrations appear to have subsided for now, reporting from Iran describes a tense calm, a heightened security presence, and widespread "disappointment and disillusionment" among Iranians.
Today we are joined by Pouya Nikmand, an Iranian-born writer who escaped Iran at 18. He writes about how his experiences have shaped his understanding of expression, freedom, and belonging on his Substack, Outliving Iran.
Timestamps: 
00:00 Intro  
02:17 What's happening in Iran now?
10:47 What does life look like under an authoritarian regime?
20:33 Growing up in Iran 
24:48 The influence of Western media in Iran
32:55 Escaping Iran 
37:05 Life after escape
40:55 Being trafficked to Poland
54:45 Escaping captivity and coming to America
01:01:53 An immigrant's perspective on US immigration
1:07:24 Outro
 
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If you became a FIRE Member through a donation to FIRE at thefire.org and would like access to Substack's paid subscriber podcast feed, please email [email protected].

Thomas Paine arrived in America in 1774 with little to his name and a long record of personal failure behind him. Within a year, he wrote Common Sense, one of the most influential political pamphlets in history, helping to ignite the American Revolution and catapulting Paine into the American history hall of fame.
But by the end of his life, he was widely reviled, politically isolated, and personally abandoned. Once celebrated as the voice of liberty, he died an outcast, mourned by only six people at his funeral.
How does one man become the voice of the American Revolution and end up forgotten? To explore Paine's complicated legacy, we are joined by Richard Bell, professor of history at the University of Maryland and author of The American Revolution and the Fate of the World.
Timestamps: 
00:00 Intro  
02:41 Thomas Paine's early life
10:32 Paine's arrival in America
20:02 What did Paine argue in Common Sense?
25:11 Why Common Sense was so revolutionary
36:31 The American Crisis and the Revolutionary War
41:35 Why Paine returned to London and wrote The Rights of Man
49:19 Exile from Britain, imprisonment in France, and writing The Age of Reason
01:01:27 Why America turned its back on Paine
01:12:09 Paine's final days
01:18:50 How should we understand Paine's legacy today?
01:26:58 Outro
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If you became a FIRE Member through a donation to FIRE at thefire.org and would like access to Substack's paid subscriber podcast feed, please email [email protected].

On January 7, 2017, The Associated Press announced that "Free-thinking author and columnist Nat Hentoff is dead at 91."
For well over 60 years, Hentoff was a one of America's foremost public intellectuals and a familiar byline to free speech advocates and jazz aficionados.
The First Amendment was a way of life for Nat Hentoff. He would have been 100 years old this year. To reflect on his life and legacy, we are joined by his son Nick Hentoff and filmmaker David Lewis, whose 2013 documentary, "The Pleasures of Being Out of Step," explored Nat Hentoff's embodiment of free expression as the defining characteristic of the individual.
Timestamps: 
00:00 Intro  
00:52 Who was Nat Hentoff 
03:48 Nat's early life & influences 
18:20 Jazz, writing, & finding his voice
31:24 Free speech as a way of being
35:15 Being out of step: Controversy, courage, and consequences
41:56 Rage, compassion, & moral clarity
51:53 Nat Hentoff's legacy of dissent
55:20 Outro
Read the transcript here.
Enjoy listening to the podcast? Donate to FIRE today and get exclusive content like member webinars, special episodes, and more.
If you became a FIRE Member through a donation to FIRE at thefire.org and would like access to Substack's paid subscriber podcast feed, please email [email protected].

Changes at the Pentagon, Charlie Kirk and cancel culture, free speech and misinformation, globalized censorship, Indiana University, how to support FIRE, and more!
 
Timestamps:
00:00 Introductions
02:11 What is the Press Clause, and who does it apply to?
05:53 FIRE's position on Oklahoma student grading incident
08:50 What does FIRE need from Members besides financial support?
15:59 FIRE's College Free Speech Rankings and what they mean
19:44 What is the latest on the Ann Seltzer cases?
22:08 What is FIRE's view on the Pentagon press room changes?
24:50 What is the value of small donations? How can FIRE supporters volunteer?
29:21 Indiana University is good at football but bad at free speech
33:46 Are courts trending in a more speech-protective direction?
37:05 Charlie Kirk and cancel culture
39:20 Pro- and anti-Zionist speech and "hostile environment" harassment
43:48 Is "globalize the intifada" incitement?
45:07 How does FIRE distinguish between free speech and misinformation?
47:54 Can FIRE help supporters start free speech alumni groups?
48:55 Free speech, artificial intelligence, and copyright/trademarks
51:51 The sordid legacy of Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier 
53:22 Staying hopeful amidst so much hypocrisy
55:32 Global speech platforms and censorship
58:14 Differences between FIRE and the ACLU?
59:34 Does FIRE have a Substack? (The Eternally Radical Idea, So to Speak, Expression)
1:00:03 Closing remarks.
 
Read the transcript here.
 
Joining us:
Alisha Glennon, chief operating officer

Nico Perrino, executive vice president

Greg Lukianoff, president and ceo

Will Creeley, legal director 

 
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If you became a FIRE Member through a donation to FIRE at thefire.org and would like access to Substack's paid subscriber podcast feed, please email [email protected].

The Institute for Free Speech's Bradley Smith and Brett Nolan join the show to discuss two upcoming Supreme Court arguments involving donor disclosure (First Choice Women's Resource Centers, Inc. v. Platkin) and political party contributions to candidates (National Republican Senatorial Committee v. FEC).
The conversation also explores the broader landscape for political speech and campaign regulation, what legal battles may be next for the Supreme Court, and how both guests found their way into First Amendment advocacy.
Timestamps: 
00:00 Intro
01:32 What is the Institute for Free Speech? 
02:39 Personal paths into free speech work
05:10 First Choice Women's Resource Centers, Inc. v. Platkin
32:08 NRSC v. FEC
51:50 What's next for campaign finance at SCOTUS?
54:58 Outro

Enjoy listening to the podcast? Donate to FIRE today and get exclusive content like member webinars, special episodes, and more. If you became a FIRE Member through a donation to FIRE at thefire.org and would like access to Substack's paid subscriber podcast feed, please email [email protected].