About this episode
Apr 10
Ep. 269: Is free speech declining worldwide?
53m 41s
Apr 3
Ep. 268: News and misinformation in early America
56m 47s
Mar 19
Ep. 266: How foreign censors target American speakers
1h 2m
Sep 2025
How America Became a Nation of "Free Speech Hypocrites"
52m 18s
Sep 2025
Jimmy Kimmel and Free Speech in the United States
30m 16s
Sep 2025
Trump Officials Pledge INSANE CRACKDOWN On Free Speech!
1 h
Sep 2025
Trump Promises Free Speech Crackdown
1h 20m
Oct 2024
“It’s the First Amendment, stupid”
38m 42s
Aug 2024
The Free Speech Debate
48m 10s
Sep 2025
Hour 1 - There is No Unity
36m 52s
Mar 2020
Ladies, Know Your First Amendment Rights.
16m 47s
Sep 2025
Who Really Needs the First Amendment Anyway?
32m 31s
Sep 2025
How Free Expression Is Under Threat In America
33m 1s
In March, juries in California and New Mexico delivered seminal verdicts holding Meta and YouTube liable for failing to protect young users from harm.
Both verdicts found that the companies were negligent in the design or operation of their platforms and that each company knew their platforms could be dangerous when used by a minor.
The courts found that the design elements of the platforms could be separated from the content hosted on the platforms, thus removing the need to consider the First Amendment or Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.
Joining us to break down the rulings and their possible free speech implications is Mike Masnick, CEO & founder of Techdirt & the Copia Institute.
Masnick is the author of "Everyone Cheering The Social Media Addiction Verdicts Against Meta Should Understand What They're Actually Cheering For."
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
02:29 Why these verdicts scare the hell out of Mike
10:34 Are social media algorithms "addictive"?
21:45 Did Meta fail to protect kids?
30:37 The First Amendment and Section 230
43:13 Is social media the new Big Tobacco?
55:15 The role of parents in social media use
59:04: Outro
Read the transcript here.
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