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Culture, Media and Free Speech
75 posts, newest first (page 2 of 4).
Sixty Years of Federal Affirmative Action Orders, From 1961 to 2025Contractor affirmative action was built by executive order, never by statute, and an executive order ended it. Eight dated entries show how. DEI Statements Were Loyalty Oaths, and the Old Oath Cases Show WhyDiversity statements in academic hiring work like the loyalty oaths the Supreme Court struck down. The oath cases explain why some schools dropped them. Language Policing Turns Ordinary Words Into Offences, and It Never EndsLists of forbidden words keep growing because their authors are rewarded for finding offences. Stanford's 2022 list shows why the logic has no stopping point. Who Decides Gender Policy for Minors? The Case for the LegislaturesAfter United States v. Skrmetti in 2025, who sets policy on gender treatments for minors? The argument that elected legislatures should, and the best answer. Speech, Pronouns and Compelled Words, Where the First Amendment Draws the LineA rule that the government may not compel speech protects everyone. Four cases show where courtesy ends and an order from the state begins. Why Women's Sports Were Separated in the First Place, From 1900 to Title IXWomen fought for their own competitions for decades. The history shows why separate categories were a victory, and what that victory asks of policy now. Fairness for Female Athletes Is a Civil Rights Argument, Made With RespectSex-based sports categories are a civil-rights position, rooted in Title IX and sport's own logic. The case, the strongest objection, and the answer. Why We Play the Anthem Before Games, From the 1918 World Series OnThe anthem at the ballpark began in a wartime World Series in 1918. The history explains why the ritual is worth keeping, and worth explaining to children. The NBA and China in 2019 and the Week a Tweet Cost a League Its VoiceOne tweet in October 2019 showed that a league loud about American politics goes quiet when a foreign market is paying. A closer look at what money buys. Should Athletes Keep Politics Off the Field? Conservatives DisagreeConservatives split on kneeling, anthems and league rules. Both sides get a fair hearing here, and the answer is one rule applied to every cause. Jesse Owens in Berlin and the Honours His Own Country Was Slow to GiveJesse Owens beat the Nazi racial myth on its own track in 1936, then waited decades for his country to say thank you. What that wait teaches about merit. Country Music Still Sings About Work, Faith and Flag, and It Is No AccidentCountry is the popular genre whose mainstream still celebrates work, faith, family and country, because its audience lives those things. Movies That Love America Still Sell Tickets, and Hollywood Keeps ForgettingFilms that honour service, faith and country keep drawing huge crowds while the industry calls each hit a fluke. An audience waits for anyone who will serve it. Made for Beijing, How the Chinese Market Changed Hollywood ScriptsStudios chasing the Chinese box office edited villains, characters and flags to please censors, and American audiences pay for it. Here is what studios owe us. When Hollywood Enlisted, the Studios and Stars Who Went to War in 1942After Pearl Harbor the film industry put stars in uniform and studios to work for the war, a model of patriotic culture that today's industry could learn from. Will Rogers Mocked Congress for Thirty Years and Never Lost the RoomThe Oklahoma cowboy humorist teased both parties and every Congress until 1935 and stayed America's favourite. He shows how to be funny without being cruel. Satire From Aristophanes to Swift Has Always Been the Weapon of the UnderdogSatire is how the governed answer the governing, every age that tried to suppress it lost, and today it comes more and more from the right. When Comedians Avoid Campus Crowds, the Whole Culture Gets Less FunnyTop comics said in 2014 and 2015 that they had stopped playing colleges, and a culture that cannot laugh at itself cannot argue with itself either. Late Night Comedy Stopped Punching at Power and Started LecturingLate night once mocked whoever held office. One-sided commentary made it less funny, and comedy aimed at everyone is the healthier tradition. FCC v. Pacifica and the Seven Dirty Words That Still Shape Broadcast RulesA 1978 ruling over a comedian's monologue still sets the rules for the airwaves. Conservatives split on it, and this post weighs both sides and picks one. Hustler v. Falwell Protected Parody, and Conservatives Benefit From It NowA unanimous 1988 ruling began with a vile ad aimed at a minister, and it now shields every satirist who mocks the powerful, including us. What to Do When an Online Mob Comes for Your Job, Step by StepA numbered playbook for a lawful-opinion pile-on at work, in order: stop posting, preserve evidence, read your papers, ask in writing, get counsel. The Hollywood Blacklist Was Wrong, and Conservatives Should Say So PlainlyThe 1947 blacklist punished people for their beliefs, and conservatives argue against cancel culture with more credibility when they say so. Can Your Boss Fire You for Your Politics? Answers State by StateThe First Amendment binds government, not private bosses, so protection for your political views at work depends on state law; here are eleven plain answers.
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- The Constitution and the Founders
- First Principles
- The Courts and the Rule of Law
- Economy, Taxes and Free Markets
- Big Government and the Administrative State
- Border, Immigration and Sovereignty
- Faith, Family and Life
- Education, Parents and Kids
- Crime, Policing and Justice
- The Second Amendment
- National Security and Foreign Policy
- Energy, Environment and the Land
- Health Care and Personal Responsibility
- American History and Heroes
- Elections, Civic Action and the Comeback
- Life, Work and Money