Our Mission

We defend the freedoms of speech and the press in the digital age through strategic litigation, research, policy advocacy, and public education.

We promote a system of free expression that is open and inclusive, that broadens and elevates public discourse, and that fosters creativity, accountability, and effective self-government.

 

 

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Blog

Knight Institute Initiative on “Federal Funding and the First Amendment” Draws Leading Scholars and Litigators

Congress Could Do Something About the Weaponization of Federal Funding to Silence Speech. For Now, It Probably Won’t.

Federal Funding as a Jawbone

Issues

Transparency & Democracy

Ensuring access to information necessary for self-government

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Featured

Knight Institute Seeks Immediate Release of Special Counsel’s Report on Trump’s Mishandling of Classified Documents

Says the public has a First Amendment “right of access” to the document

 

Privacy & Surveillance

Protecting the privacy vital to free thought and expression

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Featured

Knight Institute and SMU Law Clinic Seek Immediate Release of Records Related to Texas School’s Use of Surveillance Technology

Say surveillance systems in schools undermine students’ privacy and expressive rights, government should release related public records

Free Speech & Social Media

Safeguarding the vitality and integrity of public discourse online

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Featured

A Free Speech View on the “Free Speech” Executive Order

    

Litigation

Press Statement

USDA Reverses Course, Commits to Restore Purged Climate Webpages in Response to Farmers’ Lawsuit

The Trump administration will restore access to vital resources for climate-smart agriculture, forest conservation, climate change adaptation, and rural clean energy projects 

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Research

Essays and Scholarship

Protecting Immigrant Activists From U.S. Government Retaliation: Lessons From First Amendment Litigation

Immigrant activists in the U.S. face legal and structural barriers when fighting First Amendment retaliation. 

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Research

Essays and Scholarship

AI as Normal Technology

An alternative to the vision of AI as a potential superintelligence

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Litigation

Press Statement

Fourth Circuit Revives Challenge to Policy Silencing Immigration Judges

The independence of agencies charged with protecting employee rights has been compromised by Trump administration, court suggests

 

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