Academic opinion turning cooler toward free speech

If the climate among students on campus has turned markedly less favorable toward free expression in recent years, perhaps that is but a symptom of a deeper problem: academic opinion itself in relevant fields has turned less friendly toward free speech, which it is replacing with new concepts of speech-as-violence, speech-as-discrimination, and speech-as-scientifically-perilous-“denialism.” Each of these concepts invites the suppression of large categories of expression disapproved of by authorities. [Daniel Jacobson, Cato Policy Analysis No. 796] The paper also sheds light on how Yale law professor Robert Post might have come to write approvingly of government investigation into wrongful climate advocacy.

2 Comments

  • And public opinion is becoming cooler towards “academic freedom.” We will see who wins the budget battles.

  • I wish that were true, great unknown.

    But I believe the public – the general public, who doesn’t frequent blogs of this nature – has little or no idea of the unbelievable crap that goes on at our institutions of higher learning. They surely don’t hear about it in the so-called mainstream media.

    I hope the day of reckoning will come. And soon.