Articles in ‘Freedom of Speech’

The Free Speech Union has backed the Crown's bid to lift the permanent name suppression of a member of a wealthy New Zealand family convicted of possessing and importing more than 11,000 files of child sexual abuse material. He was sentenced in August 2025 to two years and five months' imprisonment, with his name, his family's name, and the family company all permanently suppressed. The High Court heard the Crown's application on 2 June and…

Source: Free Speech Union Full Submission: Read Full Submission · Published: April 2026 · The Free Speech Union has raised serious concerns over the proposed Policing Amendment Bill, warning it would grant police sweeping new powers to film individuals, detain them, and compel identification at public gatherings. · Scenario Raises Alarm · Turn up to a peaceful protest. An officer films you. A closure notice is issued because a constable…

The draft law was criticized for allegedly conflating legitimate criticism of Israel with anti-Jewish sentiment · A cartoon placard showing a pro-Palestinian protester being silenced at a rally against the Yadan bill, Paris, France, April 16, 2026. © Getty Images / Adnan Farzat/NurPhoto · French lawmakers linked to President Emmanuel Macron have withdrawn a controversial bill aimed at expanding anti-Semitism laws in the…

Photo credit: AI-generated image (ChatGPT/OpenAI) · The FCC chair, Brendan Carr, threatened broadcasters over their coverage of the war with Iran. · Carr suggested broadcasters could face consequences — including license issues — if their war coverage spreads what the administration considers distortions. · This is a chilling precedent. · The media is attempting to cover a rapidly unfolding war while operating under massive information gaps…

Sharing footage of attacks can lead to a prison term, hefty fines or deportation under the Gulf state’s laws · FILE PHOTO: Police cars in Abu Dhabi, UAE. © Getty Images / Cedric Ribeiro · Forty-five people of various nationalities have been arrested for sharing videos of Iranian missile and drone strikes on the UAE, police in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi have confirmed. · Iran has extensively targeted American bases and…

The tech giant could be “punishing” the outlets over warnings about escalation, according to a local media association · FILE PHOTO. ©  Global Look Press / Anna Ross · [RT] Facebook has blocked the social media pages of three Hungarian media outlets, citing violations of community principles. The move comes mere weeks before elections in the Central European nation and has been condemned by the Hungarian National Media…

As the world gets deeper in dramatic structural changes, the one universal tool – the internet – has become a new kind of trench warfare · https://www.rt.com/op-ed/authors/matthieu-buge/ By Matthieu Buge, who has worked on Russia for the magazine l’Histoire, the Russian film magazine Séance, and as a columnist for Le Courrier de Russie. He is the author of the book Le Cauchemar russe (‘The Russian…

“The Free Speech Union says our government should be grateful to the Union, and the thousands of New Zealanders who helped persuade our politicians not to pass ‘hate speech’ law, and who stood up for our long proud tradition of not jumping to ban unwelcome arguments and protests. “Last week's UK High Court ruling against the British government’s enforcement of its ban on the activist group Palestine Action again shows the folly of trying to…

The French president has demanded transparency from social media platforms on how their algorithms operate · French President Emmanuel Macron. © Getty Images / Johannes Simon · [RT] French President Emmanuel Macron has dismissed the arguments of social media platforms in favor of free speech as “pure bulls\\t,” calling for total transparency in how algorithms shape online discourse. · Speaking in New Delhi on Wednesday, Macron…

The US journalist had arrived in the country to interview the American ambassador, Mike Huckabee · Journalist Tucker Carlson attends an event in the White House on January 9, 2026 in Washington, DC. ©  Al Drago / Getty Images · [RT] US journalist and podcaster Tucker Carlson has said he was briefly detained at Ben Gurion International Airport on Wednesday after taping an interview with the US ambassador to Israel. ·…