Intellectual Freedom News 1/29/2021
Highlights
- Intellectual Freedom Manual Q&A on Thursday Feb. 4: Join contributors of the Intellectual Freedom Manual as they answer your questions about the resource. All attendees will receive a coupon to purchase the new edition at a discount, and one attendee will receive a free copy! Register: https://bit.ly/3oqREAR
- American Library Association announces 2021 Annual Meeting will be Virtual
- Meet the Candidates running for IFRT’s 2021 Executive Board!
- 2021 Deadline Extended for the Gerald Hodges Intellectual Freedom Chapter Relations Award
Censorship
- Benton Co. jail book ban violates inmates’ rights, ACLU says | El Dorado Times
- Visalia residents call out ‘ignorance’ after man petitions to remove an ethnic studies book at Redwood High School | Visalia Times Delta
- An ethnic studies textbook at Redwood High School could be removed. Here’s why. | Visalia Times Delta
- Understanding Yearbook Censorship in the Time of COVID | Student Press Law Center
- USTIC to Investigate Effect of Foreign Censorship on U.S. Businesses | USITC
Privacy & Cybersecurity
- Surveillance & Local Police: How Technology Is Evolving Faster Than Regulation | NPR Fresh Air
- Aerial surveillance plan moves one step closer to reality in St. Louis | KSDK NBC 5
- Facial recognition and other biometrics targeted in data privacy legislation, but what will feds do? | Biometric Update
- Silicon Valley Investment Firm Profits From Surveillance States | Bloomberg
- Guardrails Needed for FBI Access to Social Media Monitoring | Just Security
- University will stop using controversial remote-testing software following student outcry | The Verge
- Every crazy thing that happened in Apple and Facebook’s privacy feud today | Ars Technica
- University will stop using controversial remote-testing software following student outcry | The Verge
- Facebook users’ phone numbers are for sale through a Telegram bot | The Verge
- Why EFF Doesn’t Support Bans On Private Use of Face Recognition | EFF
More privacy news is available at the Choose Privacy Every Day blog.
First Amendment, Free Speech, & Civil Liberties
- Library Faces Lawsuit After Banning Patron | The Tribune
- Stop saying “it’s not censorship if it’s not the government” | Cory Doctorow
- Pearls Before Swine: A Quick Look at Editorial Discretion Versus Censorship | Comic Book Legal Defense Fund
- The Great Free-Speech Reversal | The Atlantic
- Civil rights advocates blast ‘anti-mob’ proposal in Florida | News4 Jacksonville
- Biden repeals Trump-era ban on transgender military service | Politico
- New Mexico Civil Rights bill could end qualified immunity as a civil defense | New Mexico Political Report
- ACLU Sues Portsmouth Over Resident’s Critical Signs | U.S. News & World Report
- Federal Judge Bars Enforcement Of EO Related To Diversity Training | JD Supra
Net Neutrality & Broadband Access
- Here’s What Educators Should Expect From the Biden Administration on Education Technology | Education Week
- How the 3 Diallo Sisters Were Finally Able to Connect to Their Classes | New York Times
- Push for municipal broadband, as pandemic highlights lack of internet access in rural Washington | king5.com
- Pressure builds on Biden, Democrats to revive net neutrality rules | The Washington Post
- Net neutrality foe and Trump’s former FCC Chairman Ajit Pai stands by repeal as Democrats take over | CNBC
Academic Freedom & Campus Speech
- Campus Civil Liberties Coalition Files Brief in Support of Title IX Free Speech, Due Process Protections | Independent Women’s Forum
- Professor counters allegations of racism — in court | Inside Higher Ed
- Digital Privacy and Higher Education: How Surveillance Threatens Academic Freedom | Cornell University Future Event: Thursday, February 18, 2021 at 12:00pm to 1:00pm
Social Media
- The Big Question: How Should Internet Speech Be Regulated? | Bloomberg
- Why Is Big Tech Policing Speech? Because the Government Isn’t | New York Times
- Tech Giants Can’t Be Trusted to Police Speech | The Nation
- Does Deplatforming Work? Big Tech And The ‘Censorship’ Debate | NPR
- Social media censorship: How do we protect speech and avoid a tech civil war? | Des Moines Register
- Six Constitutional Hurdles for Platform Speech Regulation | Stanford Center for Internet and Society
- Facebook ‘Supreme Court’ Orders Social Network To Restore 4 Posts In 1st Rulings | NPR
- Republicans, Democrats at odds over social media companies banning Trump | PEW Research Center
- Majority of tech experts approve of Trump suspension from social media | The Washington Post
- Social Media: Misinformation and Content Moderation: Issues for Congress | Library Journal INFOdocket
- Bugged by censorship, Florida Republicans seek to punish Big Tech | Orlando Sentinel
- Oklahoma lawmaker files bill that would allow state to fine Big Tech companies for censorship | KOCO ABC News 5
Copyright
- What Copyright Protections Do Choreographers Have Over Their Work? | Dance Magazine
- Vampires, Muppets and prequels: The Great Gatsby’s new life out of copyright | The Guardian
Journalism, Media, & Disinformation
- Twitter launches ‘Birdwatch,’ a forum to combat misinformation | NBC News
- In Vermont, one hyperlocal newsroom aims to fill a void | Columbia Journalism Review
- Op-Ed: I called Arizona for Biden on Fox News. Here’s what I learned | Los Angeles Times
- Judge orders Alaska governor to allow writer at press events | AP News
International News
- Hungary’s government orders disclaimers on books with gay content | NBC News
- Pakistan to ‘review’ controversial internet censorship rules | Aljazeera
- Canadian Civil Liberties Association says facial recognition tech in Canada should be suspended | IT World Canada
- Social Media Fueled Russian Protests Despite Government Attempts To Censor | KUT 90.5 NPR Austin
- Japan considers new cosplay copyright rules | World Intellectual Property Review
Around the Web
- “Never Forget That What You’re Doing Matters”: Dr. Jill Biden Closes Midwinter with Encouragement for Library Workers | Library Journal
- ALA forges new path with Midwinter Virtual
- Books Are Back in the White House — And One of Them Is by Angie Thomas | New York Times
- Tracy Chou builds anti-harassment tools, amid Reddit attacks | Protocol
- Mellon Foundation to Fund Diversity Programs at Library of Congress | New York Times
- School Librarians Can Protect Intellectual Freedom, an interview with April Dawkins | Intellectual Freedom Blog
- Mighty Ira: tribute to a civil-liberties hero | Spiked
- A New Way to Trace the History of Sci-Fi’s Made-Up Words | Wired
- How a dystopian neo-Nazi novel helped fuel decades of white supremacist terrorism | Vox
- The far right’s favorite registrar is building ‘censorship-resistant’ servers | TechCrunch
- On Cancel Culture, Accountability, and Transformative Justice | Literary Hub
- Banned, Censored, & Burned Books: There’s A Museum For That | Book Riot
- Grocery store gets restraining order against Fresno anti-mask protester after confrontation | The Fresno Bee
- Anime From Akira to Howl’s Moving Castle and its Context in Regards to Comics and Graphic Novels | Intellectual Freedom Blog
ALA News
- ALA announces 2021 Youth Media Awards
- American Library Association joins American Historical Association’s condemnation of the 1776 Commission’s Report
- ALA acclaims re-introduction of Build America’s Libraries Act
- AASL cosponsors “Jazz & Friends National Day of School and Community Readings” with HRC’s Welcoming Schools and NEA
- Celebrate the joy of reading with Miss Piggy and Kermit READ® poster tees
- Twenty additional 2020-2021 Spectrum Scholarships funded by anonymous donor
- New York Times’s 1619 Project creator Nikole Hannah-Jones to serve as 2021 Preservation Week® Honorary Chair
ALA Publishing
Awards and Grants
- Graphic Novels & Comics Round Table Announces New Best Graphic Novels for Children Reading List – Nominations Open January 2021
- Call for applications for Sullivan Award for Public Library Administrators Supporting Services to Children
- Nominations open for Paul Howard Award for Courage
- Mildred Taylor wins 2021 Children’s Literature Legacy Award
- ALA Film and Media Round Table announces 2021 Notable Films for Adults list
- Core Announces the 2021 Excellence in Children’s and Young Adult Science Fiction Notable Lists
- Nominations open for Paul Howard Award for Courage
eCourses and Webinars
- Last Chance to Register: Assessing and (Re)Writing Operational Policies Feb. 10 Core Webinar
- Last Chance to Register: Developing the Best Survey Tips from Consultations Feb. 9 Core Webinar
- Discover the Keys to Developing Motivated Workspaces at your Institution with this Core Webinar on February 24, 2021
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