Is Our Way of Protecting Free Speech Actually Keeping Us Free?

The First Amendment in the age of disinformation.

View in browser|nytimes.com Continue reading the main story October 16, 2020 It’s an article of faith in the United States that more speech is better and that the government should regulate it as little as possible. But increasingly, scholars of constitutional law, as well as social scientists, are beginning to question the way we have come to think about the First Amendment’s guarantee of free speech. In our cover story this week, Emily Bazelon asks: Is it time to ask whether the American way of protecting free speech is actually keeping us free? The New York Times The Problem of Free Speech in an Age of Disinformation How a torrent of propaganda, lies and conspiracy theories has weaponized the First Amendment. By Emily Bazelon Continue reading the main story ADVERTISEMENT MORE FROM THE MAGAZINE Jessica Pettway for The New York Times   My Mustache, My Self A quarantine facial-hair experiment led me to a deep consideration of my Blackness. By Wesley Morris Illustration by Bráulio Amado   Talk We All Live in Don DeLillo's World. He's Confused by It Too. “Trying to understand can be somewhat self-enlightening, maybe in a self-deceptive way, but that’s helpful.” By David Marchese Alec Soth/Magnum, for The New York Times   Feature The Tenants Who Evicted Their Landlord Covid-19 has revealed the depths of the nation’s rental housing crisis — but a group of Minneapolis tenants has shown that a different future is possible. By Matthew Desmond Stay in touch: Follow us on Twitter (@NYTmag) or check us out on Instagram. Appreciated this email? Forward it to a friend and help us grow. Loved a story? Hated it? Write us a letter at magazine@nytimes.com. Did a friend forward this to you? Sign up here to get the magazine newsletter. Listen to narrated versions of our articles every week. Download Audm for iPhone or Android. Continue reading the main story Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. You received this email because you signed up for The New York Times Magazine from The New York Times. To stop receiving these emails, unsubscribe or manage your email preferences. Subscribe to The TimesGet The New York Times app Connect with us on: Change Your EmailPrivacy PolicyContact UsCalifornia Notices The New York Times Company. 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018