NOTE: There was an error in yesterday’s newsletter. Text FAIRFORALL to 707070 to donate to FAIR’s 250 for 250 Campaign.
When a Pie Social Needs Police Protection
For FAIR’s Substack, Alexa Chiang writes about her experience at a recent Democrats for Informed Approach to Gender (DIAG) pie social.
But these activists aren’t interested in debate. They don’t show up to exercise free speech; their goal is to prevent us from exercising ours.
I’m fed up. Why must we sneak around? Why must we choose between concealing our identities or risking doxxing? Why do we need police protection just to eat pie? We’re not doing anything illegal. Why must we operate like underground dissidents and outlaws when they can organize openly?
I’m a free-speech absolutist. I will defend anyone’s right to speak, short of inciting immediate harm. I support trans activists’ right to voice their views in public forums, and I expect the same for myself. Peaceful, respectful argument is how society moves forward. But when these activists show up, they don’t seek conversation. They seek to stop conversation.
The Illusion of Learning: The Danger of Artificial Intelligence to Education
For the American Enterprise Institute, FAIR Advisor Robert Pondiscio writes about the dangers of artificial intelligence to education.
That’s the rub. The very people most likely to misuse AI—those with shallow background knowledge, weak discernment or motivation—are the ones most susceptible to its illusions. It’s a knowledge amplifier, not a knowledge substitute. Education is not a product to be delivered; it’s a transformation that occurs through effort. The problem with AI is that it can perform education’s outputs—essays, analyses, answers—without any of its inputs. In sum, it is a powerful tool in the hands of the curious and the motivated but devastating to those merely seeking a shortcut.
The Scandal of Ana Caldas, and the Case for Sex Screening in Female Athletics
For Quillette, FAIR Advisor Jonathan Kay writes about how far some male athletes will go to hide their true identities.
USMS records indicate that it was 23 January 2009 when a new swimming sensation identified as “Hannah Caldas” suddenly appeared on the women’s USMS racing scene. Despite being a complete unknown, Caldas immediately began dominating the competition in the 30–34-year-old age group—including winning five out of six events at Caldas’s inaugural tournament in Charlotte, NC. The performances were so astounding that Caldas reportedly almost hit a benchmark time for Portugal’s women’s Olympic swimming team (reportedly missing the cut by a mere 0.3 seconds).
This would be a shockingly impressive athletic run for anyone—let alone a (nominal) rookie such as Caldas… But of course, it’s a lot less impressive once one is reminded that, unlike everyone else in the pool at the time, Caldas isn’t a biological woman.
Why FIRE is now judging bias-reporting systems more harshly — and why I changed my mind
For The Eternally Radical Idea, Greg Lukianoff writes about the problems with bias response teams on college campuses.
At FIRE, we often say that the answer to speech you don’t like is more speech. But if we teach students that the right response is to report their peers and professors to a bureaucratic team — or the police — we’ve already lost the thread.
A university should not operate as a speech-monitoring bureaucracy. It should be a living, breathing space for debate, for discourse, and for the sometimes uncomfortable work of real learning. Our democratic experiment depends on people who know how to live with difference, not snitch on it.
The global free speech recession
For Expression, Matthew Harwood writes about the global free speech recession.
The despots of the world must relish the propaganda value of this Western backsliding on free expression.
If they attack the press, they can point to what Trump is doing in the United States as justification. Throw a critic in jail? They can bring up Macron’s lawsuit for caricaturing him in France. Punish a religious dissenter? Well, there’s the curious case of Hamit Coskun in London. Repress the supporters of a disfavored group? They can point to the UK arrests of Palestine Action protesters. These illiberal actions are gifts to the world’s dictators — the Putins, the Erdogans, the Xis of the world — demonstrating that when push comes to shove, the world’s democracies will crack down on speech they don’t like, too.
FAIR News Podcast
For audio versions of our FAIR News and FAIR Weekly Roundup newsletters, subscribe and listen to FAIR News Weekly on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or via RSS feed.
Join the FAIR Community
Join us, and become a member of FAIR.
Become a FAIR volunteer, or join a FAIR chapter.
Sign-up for a Welcome to FAIR Zoom information session to learn more about our mission.
Share your reviews and incident reports on our FAIR Transparency website.