Review legal analysis of President Trump's executive order on free speech

Ontario Premier Doug Ford and US President Donald Trump have something in common: both recently issued directives to colleges and universities intended to promote free speech on campus. Premier Ford’s came first. In August 2018, shortly after winning the provincial election, Ford required all colleges and universities in the province to devise policies upholding free speech on their campuses in line with a minimum standard prescribed by his government. The policies were to be in place no later than January 1, 2019. Failure to comply would result in a reduction of operating grant funding from the province. President Trump’s executive order concerning “free inquiry” on American campuses was issued in March 2019. The order states that it is the policy of the federal government to encourage institutions of higher learning “to foster environments that promote open, intellectually engaging, and diverse debate, including through compliance with the First Amendment for public institutions and compliance with stated institutional policies regarding freedom of speech for private institutions.”1 Colleges and universities that fail to do so are threatened with the loss of federal research and education grants. * Associate Professor, Department of Politics, Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies, York University where he teaches political theory.1 Andy Thomason, “Here’s What Trump’s Executive Order on Free Speech Says”, The Chronicle of Higher Education (21 March 2019), online: <chronicle.com/article/Heres-Wat-Trumps-Executive/245943?cid+bn&utm_medium=en&cid=bn>. An executive order is a directive issued by the President of the United States in his capacity as head of the executive branch and has the force of law. Trump’s executive order on campus free speech is reproduced in its entirety online.

Download Full-text

President Issues “Free Speech and Religious Liberty” Executive Order

Bruce R Hopkins Nonprofit Counsel ◽

10.1002/npc.30338 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 34 (7) ◽

pp. 1-2

Keyword(s):

Free Speech ◽

Religious Liberty ◽

Executive Order

Download Full-text

Free speech or hate speech? A legal analysis of the discourse about Roma on Twitter

Information & Communications Technology Law ◽

10.1080/13600834.2018.1494415 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 28 (1) ◽

pp. 1-18 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Therese Enarsson ◽

Simon Lindgren

Keyword(s):

Free Speech ◽

Hate Speech ◽

Legal Analysis

Download Full-text

Online News: User Agreements and Implications for Readers

Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly ◽

10.1177/107769900207900305 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 79 (3) ◽

pp. 602-618 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Victoria Smith Ekstrand

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Free Speech ◽

The United States ◽

Public Domain ◽

Online News ◽

Legal Analysis ◽

The Public ◽

Fundamental Shift ◽

News Online ◽

The Way

This study is a legal analysis of the online news user agreements of the Top 50 U.S. daily circulation newspapers in the United States. News user agreements are contracts that specify the conditions under which readers may access news. The contracting of news online represents a fundamental shift in the way consumers, who once bought their news, must now agree to terms of access. This study concludes that such terms often expand ownership of content that might otherwise flow freely in the public domain. It also concludes that limitations on liability as expressed in these agreements raise questions about the commitment to free speech and journalistic values online.

Download Full-text