About this episode
We travel from America to Europe, Russia, China, and more places to answer the question: Is there a global free speech recession? Guests: - Sarah McLaughlin: FIRE senior scholar, global expression - James Kirchick: FIRE senior fellow - Jacob Mchangama: FIRE senior fellow Timestamps: 00:00 Intro 03:52 Free speech global surveys 07:49 Freedom of expression deteriorating 11:43 Misinformation and disinformation 18:05 Russian state-sponsored media 24:55 Europe's Digital Services Act 29:26 Chinese censorship 34:33 Radio Free Europe 54:57 Mohammad cartoons 01:04:14 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 sotospeak@thefire.org. Show notes: - Authoritarians in the academy: How the internationalization of higher education and borderless censorship threaten free speech Sarah McLaughlin (2025) - "The First Amendment created gay America" So to Speak (2022) - "Secret city: The hidden history of gay Washington" James Kirchick (2022) - "Who in the world supports free speech?" The Future of Free Speech (2025) - "V-DEM democracy report 2025: 25 years of autocratization — democracy trumped?" V-Dem Institute (2025) - Global risks report 2024 World Economic Forum (2025)
