Fighting For The First Amendment Is Going To Be A Priority: Help Us Do It

from the free-speech-under-attack dept

Tue, Nov 15th 2016 9:31am — Mike Masnick

Throughout the campaign, we noted how Donald Trump's views on the First Amendment and free speech were horrific. While some of his supporters insist that he's wonderful for free speech because he's not "politically correct," in almost every way he's positioned himself as an enemy of free speech and the First Amendment (even the whole "political correctness" thing is misleading, because if you mention certain other words, Trump supporters seem to get just as worked up as the "PC police"). He (along with Clinton) promised to censor the internet and brushed off the free speech concerns about doing so, calling people who bring up free speech in that context to be "foolish people." And, then of course, there is the long list of threats to sue his opponents for their ads, news organizations for their articles and other critics as well. Those are all protected speech. It didn't help matters that his very first post-election tweet complained about protesters exercising their First Amendment right to assemble and protest, and the press for supposedly "inciting" them to protest.

In the past few days things haven't gotten much better. His campaign manager, Kellyanne Conway threatened Harry Reid with legal action for criticizing the President-elect. Sure, Reid's statement was hyperbolic and a bit ridiculous, but no more ridiculous than stuff that Trump himself said on the campaign trail. You don't go and threaten people for expressing their opinions -- especially when its people from opposing parties. That's what dictatorial strongmen do, not those in a country that has the First Amendment. And, of course, Trump continued to use Twitter to get into a weird spat with the NY Times insisting (incorrectly) that people were unsubscribing because of its coverage of him.

@realDonaldTrump @nytimes fact: surge in new subscriptions, print & digital, with trends, stops & starts, 4 X better than normal.
— NYTCo Communications (@NYTimesComm) November 13, 2016

And then he insisted that the NY Times was lying in reporting on things he said about having more countries get nuclear weapons. Except he did say those things, and even the friendliest publication to Trump, Breitbart, reported on him saying it.

Yes you literally did. Even Breitbart reported it https://t.co/gXXwAkrSH8 https://t.co/KMThfUSPTn
— Ashley Feinberg (@ashleyfeinberg) November 13, 2016

No, he's not threatening legal action there, but selectively attacking and calling out certain publications -- especially for their accurate reporting -- is pretty ridiculous and again shows that Trump seems to have a serious inability to recognize that adversarial reporting on the government is kind of an important part of the freedom of the press.

And we haven't even gotten to Trump's promise to "open up libel law" to make sure that publications that reported negatively on him have "problems." As we noted when he said this, while he can't just "open up libel laws," he can still create lots of problems for free speech and the First Amendment.

And that's why people like Margaret Sullivan are arguing that this is our big First Amendment test. Some people have argued -- including in our comments -- that we should wait and see what Trump actually does. I think we should take him at his word. If he didn't mean, then let's see it by his actions. But in the meantime, it's going to be important to guard our free speech rights carefully, because Trump and his campaign have so far showed almost no respect for them at all. As journalism professor Dan Gillmor said in a recent speech, journalists need to become activists for free speech.

At Techdirt, we've always considered ourselves exactly that: strong advocates for free speech and an open internet, and so much of what we talk about stems from that. And we plan to continue to do so, even though we're quite small. I know I've seen lots of people suggest people subscribe to newspapers and some wonderful organizations like the ACLU and EFF -- and we're all for that too. But if you want Techdirt's voice to keep speaking out on this as well, perhaps, think about supporting us as well.

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Filed Under: chilling effects, defamation, donald trump, first amendment, free speech, kellyanne conway, slapp, threats

32 Comments

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Baron von Robber, 15 Nov 2016 @ 9:42am

With Internet heroes like Ken White, it would be hopeful thinking that if Drumpf did sue one of their critiques, it would fall under an anti-SLAPP jurisdiction. Nothing works better than paying for your own dumb mistakes.
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jupiterkansas (profile), 15 Nov 2016 @ 9:46am

I think we should take him at his word. If he didn't mean, then let's see it by his actions.

Why? It's obvious he doesn't mean anything he says and his supporters know this. He only says things to get attention, and hey - free speech - he can say whatever he wants.

Let's ignore his calls for attention and put our attention on his actions, because that's all that really matters.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Nov 2016 @ 9:48am

It's going to be a long four years
I'm on board with you guys. A free press is the most fundamental component to keeping a free society. One could argue that the raw sewage spewing from social media drowned out the objective press and led to this result. Now we find every freedom other than gun ownership under threat.

Personally, I am very worried that anyone will be able to stop Trump from destroying the 1st amendment. A lot of people seem to think TrumpTV was a backup plan in case he lost. I'm thinking it's more likely that he will try to create a state-run media outlet. Then we're into pure dictator territory.

Good luck out there.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Nov 2016 @ 10:07am

To be clear on donation rules - TechDirt is in no way considered a lobbying organization, right? Nothing that would legally bar certain people from donating?
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Baron von Robber, 15 Nov 2016 @ 10:09am

Re: It's going to be a long four years
With Steve Bannon on his team, Breitbart is a state-run media outlet.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Nov 2016 @ 10:11am

Free speech is awesome, as long as you agree with it
https://techcrunch.com/2016/11/15/google-and-facebook-ban-fake-news-sites-from-their-advertising-net works/?ncid=rss

I know these are private companies and it would be awesome if they could actually identify fake news. But once they start filtering, they will go to far. Soon, any news site they don't like will be "fake" news.

But then again, Fox News is the only right-leaning news network so there is a reason it is the most popular. Once the social media giants ban conservative news, a new site will pop-up. Long live the free market!
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Nov 2016 @ 10:19am

I'm usually the adversary on this site. Right leaning, pro-2nd amendment, live in the south, not fond of liberals ideals or socialism. NOT a racist or bigot, but I CAN see why the lefties would think that. And although I respect the hell out of Helmet, PaulT, Mason, Wendy and the like, I really enjoy poking them as hard as I can with my virtual stick. I like to do so Anonymously, and would like to keep it that way. Is there a way I can contribute Anonymously?

`AJ
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amoshias (profile), 15 Nov 2016 @ 10:22am

Where can lawyers help?
Any suggestions for groups where, as an attorney who cares deeply about the issues frequently discussed here, I could offer my time and work?
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Nov 2016 @ 10:28am

Re:
Possibly BitCoin assuming by Anonymously you mean only from TechDirt staff.
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roebling (profile), 15 Nov 2016 @ 10:29am

Is this a joke?
Is the writer being witty? Throughout the campaign, Globalist-funded corporate media alternated between taking Trump's remarks out of context and misrepresenting them and outright lying. The best selling book of this year's presidential campaign season was a compilation of the corporate press's Trump-slandering lies of omission juxtaposed with the truth.
Today the best of that genre (NYT) has publicly acknowledging their misdeeds and they've vowed to return to their journalistic roots. And today, of all days, alt-tech's NYT, "Techdirt", publishes this crap?
It's sad.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Nov 2016 @ 10:46am

Re: Is this a joke?
Just because much of the reporting done by many news outlets against Trump have been false or out of context doesn't mean all reporting about him is false.

There are multiple legal dockets worth Trump's name on it as the plantiff where he seeks to suppress the speech of the defendant. Sometimes the courts have found the reasons legitimate, but more often than not the courts have found Trump's speech-suppressing lawsuits to be without merit.

To even go to court and defend oneself costs money. It is not unreasonable for TechDirt to want enough money to have the ability to defend themselves in court should that day ever come.
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timmaguire42 (profile), 15 Nov 2016 @ 11:00am

Almost everyone hates political correctness in the abstract, but almost everyone has their sacred cows that must be protected. You can tell someone's true level of support for free speech by how they react when you gore their ox.

(Is that a mixed metaphor? Or close enough for government work?)
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Nov 2016 @ 11:00am

Re: Where can lawyers help?
EFF is probably a good place to start.
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timmaguire42 (profile), 15 Nov 2016 @ 11:03am

By the way, last week I accepted four free weeks from the New York Times with no obligation to buy. Am I counted as a new subscription? I bet I am.

I'm going to go ahead and score that one a win for Trump. (Note their recent 96% drop in profits.)
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Nov 2016 @ 11:03am

Re: Where can lawyers help?
I believe both EFF and ACLU can use voluntary legal help to try ie. legislation in courts. EFF is mostly for technology-related topics but internationalistic and relatively bipartisan. ACLU is a lot broader and use more legal hands but they are nationally centered on US issues and quite a bit more partisan.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Nov 2016 @ 11:59am

Re:
Friendly advice - quit it with the Drumpf stuff. It's like calling him poopyhead. It's more insulting to you than it is to him.
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Mike Masnick (profile), 15 Nov 2016 @ 12:25pm

Re:
To be clear on donation rules - TechDirt is in no way considered a lobbying organization, right? Nothing that would legally bar certain people from donating?

We are not in any way a lobbying organization.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Nov 2016 @ 12:37pm

Massive tech companies have more control over free speech than any government could dream to, and yet I constantly see people defending companies' right to engage in censorship.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Nov 2016 @ 12:48pm

Re: Re: It's going to be a long four years
"A free press is the most fundamental component to keeping a free society."

The Declaration of Independence called and said you were wrong. We have freedom of the press and there is very little outcry against NSL's, Patriot Act, countless Court Gag orders, and a lot of calls for overturning the 1st by several people in so called 'higher' education systems. Well they are 'high' just in the drug induced sort of way!

"The People" will always be the most fundamental component to keeping a free society, freedom of the press is just the 1st tool to help with that. Just know that when it comes to liberty you are clearly in the minority. Most people want your liberty removed for their convenience, political ideology, religious ideology, or just because they are that clueless.
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Nov 2016 @ 12:53pm

Re: Re: Is this a joke?
> Just because much of the reporting done by many news outlets against Trump have been false or out of context doesn't mean all reporting about him is false.

Only the good things about Trump are true. The bad things are all lies! I know because Trump said so!
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Anonymous Coward, 15 Nov 2016 @ 2:12pm

Re:
It's a proxy argument popularised by some Internet subcultures and reputation management firms. It tries to reframe the argument as one of business rights to turn a subjective position "I dislike that speech and it should be censored" to an objective one "(Company) has the legal right to censor speech."

It's manipulative debate tactics designed to shut down debate. It's aggressively used by Microsoft to shut down complaints about Windows 10 and its surveillance practices.
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Baron von Robber, 15 Nov 2016 @ 2:27pm

Re: Re:
But I'm a traditionalist. Drumpf was his family's name up until his grandfather, when he immigrated from Germany, was Drumpf. he changed it to Trump.

So if you know any family name of poopyhead, let us know.
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sorrykb (profile), 15 Nov 2016 @ 3:11pm

Re: Is this a joke?

Today the best of that genre (NYT) has publicly acknowledging their misdeeds and they've vowed to return to their journalistic roots

uh, no. That's not what their letter said at all.

You really shouldn't believe everything Dear Leader Trump says. Even he said you shouldn't take him at his word.
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sorrykb (profile), 15 Nov 2016 @ 3:14pm

Re:
And I became a paid subscriber, and so have cancelled out your "win".
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Padpaw (profile), 16 Nov 2016 @ 12:55am

Re: Re: Re: Is this a joke?
they don't help their cause though when they cease to be a neutral and unbiased press though.

The perception ever after is that if they got caught constantly lying about someone then most will believe they are lying now.
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Anonymous Coward, 16 Nov 2016 @ 2:56am

Re: Re:
Yeah, like the "Barack Hussein Osama" shit didn't carry on for the entire last decade.
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Anonymous Coward, 16 Nov 2016 @ 6:51am

Considering he hasn't actually done anything yet,
perhaps it would be wise to take a step back, and consider whether jumping on the whiner wagon at this very moment is such a good idea.

Do I expect him to do some evil shit? Yep.

But it is worth noting, that in terms of CITIZEN speech, the mafia-esque approaches to controlling the national dialog, executed by the unholy trinity and major journalistic outlets, is also corrosive to the political dialog.

It is pretty funny to watch them flipping out, bashing the guy because their knobs might not get the polish and wax it did from previous administrations.

Personally I think the best thing he could do is move the press corp out onto the back lawn. Yep, it is cold and rainy. Americans work in those conditions. No reason the press corp should get a roof on the taxpayer dime. Maybe even put a screener out on Pennsylvania Ave. and shuttle up a citizen or two a day to the front of the press corps, to ask their own questions.

His constituency would LOVE that. And frankly far left labor would love it too.

This bandwagon is about chickenshit main-media black mail. IMHO TD would be doing itself a favor, by letting the douche-ocracy handle this one, all by their lonesome.
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Anonymous Coward, 16 Nov 2016 @ 6:52am

Re: Re:
I fail to see why using his family name is insulting.

What's more curious is why he would distance himself from it.
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Anonymous Coward, 16 Nov 2016 @ 7:39am

Re: Re: Re:
I haven't heard him say anything about it.
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Anonymous Coward, 16 Nov 2016 @ 11:52pm

Re: Re: Re: It's going to be a long four years
Make that thirteen years, give or take. Four years ago, Tarek Mehanna was sentenced to 17 years for, basically, making translations. (And, BTW, prosecuted by the same attorney in charge of prosecuting Aaron Swartz.)

For Mr Mehanna, I guess the whole Trump thing must have started seven years ago (when he was arrested in 2009). Unclear to me whether he gets credit for time served prior to his sentencing.

People suddenly up in arms over Trump, they puzzle me. Like, what, it's not fascism until John Podesta says it is? Julian Assange is confined to the Ecuadorean embassy for four years, but free speech isn't threatened until Donald Trump is the one who threatens it? It isn't race-baiting when the Clintons do it, 'cause they're just so classy about it? It's not xenophobic demogoguery unless it's literally the Monopoly Man who incites it? Is it only xenophobic demogoguery when it's not ever-so-tactfully directed at a nuclear power?

We're just now finishing up eight more years of Bush-Cheney American Exceptionalist Daddy-knows-bestness, the Cosby-show variant, with an extra helping of insipid, baseless Red-baiting. Are the next four are going to be any different? I'll believe it when I see it.

/rant

Good luck guys. And I mean that sincerely.
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Wendy Cockcroft (profile), 17 Nov 2016 @ 2:34am

Re:
Aw, shucks, AJ!
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Anonymous Coward, 17 Nov 2016 @ 7:38am

Re:
Trump"
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