This is the Daily Media Update published by the Institute for Free Speech. For press inquiries, please contact [email protected].  

Washington Post: Suit alleging D.C. violated antiabortion advocates’ rights can proceed, court rules

By Casey Parks

.....The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled Tuesday that a lower court was wrong to dismiss antiabortion advocates’ claims that the city violated their free speech rights when it arrested them for writing a slogan on a sidewalk in 2020.

In August 2020, police arrested Erica Caporaletti, a 22-year-old student at Towson University, and Warner DePriest, a 29-year-old D.C. resident, who were writing “Black Pre-Born Lives Matter” with chalk on the sidewalk outside a Planned Parenthood facility in Northeast Washington. It is illegal for people to write or mark on any public or private property without a permit.

Reuters: ABA weighs new free speech rule for law schools

By Karen Sloan

.....The ABA’s Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar, which oversees law school accreditation, on Friday will consider a new rule mandating “written policies that encourage and support the free expression of ideas.”

“Becoming an effective advocate or counselor requires learning how to conduct candid and civil discourse in respectful disagreement with others while advancing reasoned and evidence-brd arguments,” the proposed new rule reads. “Concerns about civility and mutual respect, however, do not justify barring discussion of ideas because they are controversial or even offensive or disagreeable to some.”

Forbes: Group Of College Presidents Launches New Campaign In Defense Of Free Speech

By Michael T. Nietzel

.....A group of 13 college presidents is launching a new campaign, called the Campus Call for Free Expression, to bring renewed attention to the importance of free expression, critical inquiry and civil discourse on college campuses.

The Campus Call is a project of College Presidents for Civic Preparedness, a recent initiative convened by the Institute for Citizens and Scholars. The group ‘brings together college presidents who are committed to addressing the challenge of ensuring today’s young people are well-informed, productively engaged, and committed citizens.”

Washington Post: State investigators will probe police raid of Kansas newspaper office

By Paul Farhi and Sofia Andrade

.....The Kansas Bureau of Investigation has begun a criminal probe of the police raid of a newspaper office last week that has drawn outrage from journalists nationwide who see it as a violation of the First Amendment.

It’s not clear whether the state investigation is focused on the local officers who conducted the search at the Marion County Record or on the reporters and editors for the small weekly paper. The agency said it was asked by Marion police and the local county attorney to join an investigation into allegations of “illegal access and dissemination of confidential criminal justice information,” according to the Kansas City Star.

Axios: Exclusive: Courier Newsroom plots expansion ahead of 2024 election

By Sara Fischer

.....Courier Newsroom, a local news group with a progressive perspective, is launching a new newsroom in Nevada Tuesday, and it's planning to launch two more newsrooms in Texas and New Hampshire in the coming months, said its publisher Tara McGowan.

Washington Examiner: Democratic Arabella dark money network faces IRS complaint over lining ex-Clinton aide's pockets

By Gabe Kaminsky

.....Nonprofit groups in the largest Democratic-linked dark money network in the United States may have illegally "diverted substantial portions of their income and assets" to benefit the founder of the for-profit firm overseeing them, a watchdog says.

Los Angeles Times: Column: How small donors have become a destructive, dividing force in American politics

.....[L]ast week on CNN, I made a fairly conventional point about the distorting effects of the rise in small donors for democracy. Candidates who depend on small donors tend to take more polarizing positions. In part because they don’t care much about electability, they push their party to more extreme stances, making the party “brand” less appealing to moderates.

The Hill: GOP lawmaker says he was hacked by Chinese spies

By Olafimihan Oshin

.....Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) said Tuesday that he was the victim of a hacking attack by Chinese spies after hackers reportedly also managed to read emails belonging to State Department employees.

“I thank the FBI for notifying me that the CCP hacked into my personal and campaign emails from May 15th to June 16th of this year,” Bacon wrote Monday on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, referring to the Chinese Communist Party. He added that the hackers “utilized a vulnerability in the Microsoft software” and that the breach was not caused by “user error.”

Digiday: Agencies weigh the pros and cons of generative AI as political advertising grows

By Antoinette Siu

.....The advantages to applying AI can range from better personalization and access to real-time insights to efficient campaign management and lower advertising costs. With how quickly tools are being developed, candidates and groups that can leverage AI effectively may gain an “upper hand,” said Mike Nellis, CEO of Authentic and founder of AI campaign tool Quiller…

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