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Category Archives: Censorship

Arkansas Law Criminalizing Librarians Ruled Unconstitutional

AP: “A federal judge on Monday struck down key parts of an Arkansas law that would have allowed criminal charges against librarians and booksellers for providing “harmful” materials to minors. U.S. District Judge Timothy Brooks found that elements of the law are unconstitutional. “I respect the court’s ruling and will appeal,” Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin said in a statement to The Associated Press. The law would have created a new process to challenge library materials and request that they be relocated to areas not accessible to children. The measure was signed by Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders in 2023, but an earlier ruling had temporarily blocked it from taking effect while it was being challenged in court. “The law deputizes librarians and booksellers as the agents of censorship; when motivated by the fear of jail time, it is likely they will shelve only books fit for young children and segregate or discard the rest,” Brooks wrote in his ruling. A coalition that included the Central Arkansas Library System in Little Rock had challenged the law, saying fear of prosecution under the measure could prompt libraries and booksellers to no longer carry titles that could be challenged…”

Review of DOJ Process to Obtain Records of Members of Congress, Media

DOJ Oversight and Review Division 25-01. Redacted For Public Release. A Review of the Department of Justice’s Issuance of Compulsory Process to Obtain Records of Members of Congress, Congressional Staffers, and Members of the News Media: “In the spring and summer of 2017, CNN.com (CNN), The New York Times, and The Washington Post published articles… Continue Reading

American Autocracy Threat Tracker

State Democracy Defenders Action: “President-elect Donald Trump has said he will be a “dictator on day one.” Our American Autocracy Threat Tracker comprehensively catalogs all of Trump’s and his allies’ Project 2025 and other specific plans and promises. We also catalog potential bipartisan solutions to address the threat both now and should it come to… Continue Reading

Rebel Yell

Tablet – Part I: Donald Trump broke the back of the GOP establishment by driving blue-collar and lower-middle-class politics in a Southern direction. His gentry Republican critics have only themselves to blame. Donald Trump’s first and in many ways most enduring political accomplishment is not the humiliation of the Democratic Party he has toppled in… Continue Reading

Top Ten EFF Digital Security Resources for People Concerned About Incoming Trump Administration

“In the wake of the 2024 election in the United States, many people are concerned about tightening up their digital privacy and security practices. As always, we recommend that people start making their security plan by understanding their risks. For most people in the U.S., the threats that they face and the methods by which… Continue Reading

Librarian Amanda Jones Files New Defamation Lawsuits

School Library Journal – Amanda Jones has had enough. Again. The 2021 School Librarian of the Year, who has sued online harassers in the past, filed two new federal lawsuits on Tuesday. Jones is suing Dan Kleinman for defamation and “false light”—an invasion of privacy that arises from publicity that unreasonably places the plaintiff in… Continue Reading

The New Administration: A Boon for Investigative Journalism

Via LLRX – The New Administration: A Boon for Investigative Journalism – This commentary by Michael Ravnitzky highlights the critical period ahead for investigative journalism under the new presidential administration. Controversial stances and policy shifts will provide many more opportunities than usual for journalists to uncover and report on critical issues, ensuring that the administration’s… Continue Reading

Documenting the Assault on Disinformation and Hate Speech Research

“President-elect Donald Trump, Elon Musk, Rep. Jim Jordan, and other MAGA Republicans are engaged in an ongoing campaign to target researchers studying disinformation and hate speech. Philip Napoli–the James R. Shepley Professor of Public Policy, Director of the DeWitt Wallace Center for Media & Democracy, and Senior Associate Dean for Faculty and Research for the… Continue Reading

How Google Spent 15 Years Creating a Culture of Concealment

The New York Times [free article] – “Trying to avoid antitrust suits, Google systematically told employees to destroy messages, avoid certain words and copy the lawyers as often as possible…How Google developed this distrustful culture was pieced together from hundreds of documents and exhibits, as well as witness testimony, in three antitrust trials against the… Continue Reading

This Election Should Not Determine the Fate of Libraries

EveryLibrary – (But it Might Have) – “Libraries have never been immune from political and social movements, but we have behaved as if we are somehow a special place, a place apart from these fights. The last three years of censorship and discrimination fights should have been a wake-up call for our library organizations, stakeholders,… Continue Reading

Freedom to Read Advocates Notch a Legal Victory in Alaska

Publisher’s Weekly: “After a favorable legal ruling in August, freedom to read advocates in Alaska have scored a significant victory in court over would-be book banners. In an October 31 filing, the Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District in Alaska agreed to pay $89,000 to settle claims that the district improperly removed dozens of books, including several… Continue Reading

Justice Department to Monitor Polls in 27 States for Compliance with Federal Voting Rights Laws

Federal prosecutors are on call in every district in the country. Interfering with voting rights is a federal offense. Any effort to intimidate, harass, threaten or harm voters will result in a visit from the FBI. Witnesses or victims may call 9-1-1. (Making a false report is a crime, too!) Let’s keep voting safe, free,… Continue Reading