First Five

What types of speech are NOT protected by the First Amendment?

How quickly can a despotic government dismantle a free press? We talk to Abdulhamit Bilici, former editor-in-chief of the largest newspaper in Turkey, now living in exile after President Erdogan's takeover of the press and imprisonment of over 150 journalists. 

Does the freedom of religion protect sites that are sacred to Native Americans?

Is requiring someone to have a license to call themselves a certain type of professional — like a psychologist — a violation of freedom of speech? In this episode, we talk to Mary Lou Serafine, who made that argument in front of the Fifth Circuit, and won. 

In this episode, we discuss the events that transpired at the white supremacist rallies in Charlottesville. How should we balance hateful messages and threats to public safety against the rights to free speech and free assembly?

Every day, journalists place themselves in peril to bring people the news.  Austin Tice is a journalist who has been held hostage in Syria for the past five years.  On the eve of Austin's 36th birthday and the fifth anniversary of his disappearance, we talked to his mother, Debra Tice. 

Journalists are supposed to serve as "watchdogs" on the government. But how do they get access to the information they need to do that? In this episode, we talk to Buzzfeed lawyer Nabiha Syed about "freedom of information" laws with --which are often the secret to learning government secrets.

Government employees are in the best position to reveal government corruption and misconduct. So when can they be fired for their speech — and when does the First Amendment protect them?

What should we do about online hate speech? Ban it? Embrace it? In this episode we explore the approaches that different social media platforms take when it comes to their users posting hateful and offensive content.

Does a law that says that you can’t trademark an offensive or racist name violate freedom of speech? We talk to Simon Tam, founder of Asian-American dance rock band “The Slants” and lead plaintiff in the recent Supreme Court case that dealt with this very question.

ACLU attorney Esha Bhandari talks about representing the anonymous Tweeter behind a “rogue” Twitter account critical of the Trump administration, and shares her thoughts about why the right to speak anonymously is so important--and how technology and social media have changed how we use it.

The First Five launches with a discussion of the results of this year’s State of the First Amendment Survey. The most troubling finding? One in four Americans thinks the First Amendment goes too far in the freedoms it guarantees.

Can your boss fire you because of your political views? Can a journalist publish stolen information? Can a university ban a controversial speaker? Learn the answers to these questions and more by listening to The First Five. Hosts Lata Nott and Gene Policinski talk to the experts and cut through the jargon to explain how the five freedoms of the First Amendment work, and what you can do to protect them.