ABC Accuses Government of Violating First Amendment; The New York Times, May 8, 2026

Jim Rutenberg and John Koblin , The New York Times; ABC Accuses Government of Violating First Amendment

The network’s argument, made to the F.C.C., is the most aggressive posture taken yet by a television network toward the Trump administration.

"ABC has accused the Federal Communications Commission of violating its free speech rights, potentially setting the stage for a protracted, high-stakes legal battle between the network and the Trump administration.

The company said in a filing with the agency that regulators had a “chilling effect” on free speech by trying to punish political content they disagreed with. The filing, made public on Friday, is the most aggressive defense from any television network since President Trump kicked off an extended campaign last year to bring media organizations to heel.

It represented a striking departure for ABC. The network, under the corporate stewardship of the Walt Disney Company, set an early tone of compliance toward Mr. Trump when it settled a defamation lawsuit with him for $15 million in December 2024. Many legal experts considered Mr. Trump’s case unlikely to succeed in court.

The filing was registered on behalf of a single ABC station in Houston and involved a minor regulatory dispute over the talk show “The View.” But in a signal of its importance, the company’s paperwork was signed by one of the most experienced Supreme Court litigators in the country, Paul D. Clement, a solicitor general under President George W. Bush."

Huntington Beach ordered to pay $1 million in lawyer fees in library censorship lawsuit; The Orange County Register, April 30, 2026

CLAIRE WANG , The Orange County Register; Huntington Beach ordered to pay $1 million in lawyer fees in library censorship lawsuit

"Huntington Beach must foot roughly $1 million in legal bills for restricting minors’ access to certain books at the city’s library, an Orange County judge ordered this week.

In a tentative ruling Monday, April 27, Orange County Judge Lindsey Martinez said the city needs to pay $960,000 to attorneys from four legal organizations, who billed more than 1,300 hours of work on the high-profile lawsuit against the city’s book restriction policy."

Book bans and culture wars came for libraries. They’re still standing strong. ; The 19th, April 24, 2026

Nadra Nittle , The 19th; Book bans and culture wars came for libraries. They’re still standing strong. 

During National Library Week, librarians throughout the country fight for books, jobs and truth.

"When students ask why books with LGBTQ+ themes need to be included in the collection, DeMaria tells them to consider the limited number of movies, books and other media that portray queer people. 

LGBTQ+ students “deserve that representation,” she said. “If it sits on the shelf because at that moment I don’t have a student who needs that mirror, that’s where it stays until I do.”"

Repression of Uyghurs persists as the world moves on; Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), April 19, 2026

 Yalkun Uluyol, Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC); Repression of Uyghurs persists as the world moves on

"Yalkun Uluyol, a China researcher at Human Rights Watch, is participating in a panel discussion of the ethical and legal dilemmas at the heart of international human rights, The Attention Economy of Suffering, presented by The Ethics Centre in partnership with Human Rights Watch, on Tuesday, 21 April 2026.

Dozens of my family members, including my father, Memet Yaqup, have disappeared into China’s system of mass incarceration over the past decade simply for being Uyghurs. When international attention to our plight surged — through joint statements at the United Nations, extensive media coverage, national parliaments recognising atrocity crimes — I believed there would be enough pressure to secure the release of my loved ones. 

Yet, eight years into my father’s enforced disappearance, I still have no information about his whereabouts, health or the allegations that led to his imprisonment. Meanwhile, the world’s attention has moved on.

My father is one of the hundreds of thousands who since 2016 have suffered the Chinese government’s grave human rights violations in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. The Chinese authorities have subjected Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims to mass arbitrary detention, unjust imprisonments, intrusive surveillance and forced labour.

The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights concluded in a landmark 2022 report that the Chinese government may have committed crimes against humanity in Xinjiang. That acknowledgement marked a rare moment when the Uyghur people appeared to have the world’s attention. Yet even then, China’s global influence was on full display. 

Efforts by a group of countries who tried to place Xinjiang on the formal agenda of the UN Human Rights Council were narrowly defeated after heavy pressure from Beijing. What happened read like a page taken from the Beijing playbook: intimidation of critics, the cultivation and mobilisation of allies, and a steady erosion of momentum for such criticism.

In Xinjiang, the Chinese government weaponises information about people’s everyday lives — lawful and peaceful behaviours — and uses it against them. The authorities have put mass surveillance tools in place, including one called the Integrated Joint Operations Platform, to track everyone, their movements, contacts, phone use and contents, vehicle location and interaction with people abroad."

American Library Association releases 2025 Most Challenged Books List as National Library Week Begins; American Library Association (ALA), April 20, 2026

American Library Association (ALA); American Library Association releases 2025 Most Challenged Books List as National Library Week Begins

"Today the American Library Association (ALA) releases its highly anticipated Top 11 Most Challenged Books List of 2025 as part of the 2026 State of America’s Libraries Report, offering a window into the ongoing challenges libraries continue to face head-on.

As the nation’s libraries unite to celebrate the start of National Library Week and communities everywhere recognize the valuable contribution of America’s libraries and the people who power them, library workers around the country continue to grapple with censorship challenges and threats to their livelihood.

ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) tracked 4,235 unique titles challenged in 2025, the second highest ever documented by ALA. The highest ever documented was 4,240 in 2023.

Of the unique titles challenged in 2025, 1,671 (40%) represent the lived experiences of LGBTQIA+ people and people of color.

“Libraries exist to make space for every story and every lived experience,” said ALA President Sam Helmick. “As we celebrate National Library Week, we reaffirm that libraries are places for knowledge, for access, and for all.”

ALA documented 713 attempts to censor library materials and services, 487 of which targeted books. The Top 11 Most Targeted Titles in 2025 were:

1. Sold by Patricia McCormick

2. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

3. Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe

4. Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas

5. (tie) Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo

5. (tie) Tricks by Ellen Hopkins

7. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

8. (tie) A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

8. (tie) Identical by Ellen Hopkins

8. (tie) Looking for Alaska by John Green

8. (tie) Storm and Fury by Jennifer L. Armentrout

In 2025, 92 percent of all book challenges were initiated by pressure groups, government officials and decision makers, up from 72 percent in 2024. Less than 3 percent of challenges originated from individual parents.

“In 2025, book bans were not sparked by concerned parents, and they were not the result of local grassroots efforts,” said Sarah Lamdan, Executive Director of ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom. “They were part of a well-funded, politically-driven campaign to suppress the stories and lived experiences of LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC individuals and communities.”

ALA defines a “ban” as the removal of materials from a library based on the objections of a person or group. A “challenge” is an attempt to have a library resource removed, or access to it restricted, based on the objections of a person or group. In 2025, OIF documented 5,668 books banned from libraries (66% of the total challenged). An additional 920 books were censored through access restrictions such as relocation or requiring parental permission. This is both the highest number of titles censored in one year and the highest rate of challenges resulting in censorship from 1990–2025. 

To help inform library workers and the public about censorship issues, OIF recently launched several new and updated resources, including the Censorship Search Portal, which allows people to search OIF’s expansive database to learn about efforts to ban books; the Censorship Cases Bot on Bluesky, which provides real-time updates on the latest book censorship litigation in partnership with the Free Law Project; and the eleventh edition of the Intellectual Freedom Manual, which offers up-to-date insights on protecting intellectual freedom, fighting censorship, safeguarding privacy, and more.

Amid the censorship challenges facing the nation’s libraries, National Library Week’s theme of “Finding Your Joy” is an invitation for everyone to explore and discover what sparks joy in them at the library. Throughout the week, Honorary Chair Mychal Threets will elevate the important role libraries and library workers play in schools and communities.

NLW 2026 Celebration Days:

Monday, April 20: Right to Read Day, a day for readers, advocates, and library lovers to take action to protect, defend, and celebrate the right to read.

Tuesday, April 21: National Library Workers Day, a day for library staff, users, administrators, and Friends groups to recognize the valuable contributions made by all library workers.

Wednesday, April 22: National Library Outreach Day (formerly National Bookmobile Day), a day to celebrate library outreach and the dedicated library professionals who are meeting their patrons where they are.

Thursday, April 23: Take Action for Libraries Day, ALA is calling on library supporters to contact their congressmembers and voice opposition to the federal book banning bill, H.R. 7661."

ALA is also pleased to share the theme of Banned Books Week 2026 (October 4–10, 2026), “Let Books Be. Protect the Freedom to Read.” This year’s campaign features three illustrations that elevate the ways in which libraries and access to information enrich our lives. The artwork will be unveiled next week, and posters, apparel, and more will be available in the ALA Store and Library Gift Shop on April 30.

To learn more about censorship in libraries and find resources for preventing and responding to book bans, visit ALA.org/BBooks,"

Threats to Library Funding End With Settlement by Trump Administration; The New York Times, April 13, 2026

Jennifer Schuessler , The New York Times; Threats to Library Funding End With Settlement by Trump Administration

"The Trump administration has reached a settlement with the American Library Association and a union of cultural workers, bringing to an end its yearlong effort to dismantle the Institute of Museum and Library Services, a federal agency.

The settlement, reached by the Justice Department last week, affirms that the agency will continue issuing grants and operating its programs, which provide support to institutions in every state and territory. The Trump administration reaffirmed that it had reinstated all previously canceled grants, in keeping with a separate legal ruling last year, and reversed all staff reductions. It also promised not to take any further steps to reduce the agency.

Sam Helmick, the president of the American Library Association, said the threats had set off “a chain reaction” of cuts in services and called the settlement a victory for “every American’s freedom to read and learn.”

“This settlement protects life-changing library services for communities across the country,” Helmick said."

Iowa can restrict LGBTQ+ books and topics at schools, appellate court rules; Associated Press via The Guardian, April 6, 2026

Associated Press via The Guardian; Iowa can restrict LGBTQ+ books and topics at schools, appellate court rules

Ruling, vacating lower court’s temporary block, applies to classrooms and libraries up to sixth grade 

"Iowa can enforce a law that restricts teachers from talking about LGBTQ+ topics with students in kindergarten through the sixth grade and bans some books in libraries and classrooms, an appellate court said on Monday.

The decision for now vacates a lower court judge’s temporary blocks on the law.

The measure was first approved by Republican majorities in the Iowa house and senate and the Republican governor, Kim Reynolds, in 2023, which they said reinforced age-appropriate education in kindergarten through 12th grades. It has been a back-and-forth battle in the courts in the three years since lawsuits were filed by the Iowa State Education Association, major publishing houses and bestselling authors, as well as Iowa Safe Schools, an LGBTQ+ advocacy organization."

‘Proactively fall in line’: Holocaust Memorial Museum quietly changed content after Trump returned to office; Politico, April 5, 2026

IRIE SENTNER, Politico ; ‘Proactively fall in line’: Holocaust Memorial Museum quietly changed content after Trump returned to office

Two former employees said they believed the museum was altering its content preemptively to avoid unwanted negative attention from the Trump administration.

"In the first year of President Donald Trump’s second term, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington quietly removed from its website educational resources about American racism and canceled a workshop about the “fragility of democracy.”

The changes, which have not been previously reported, came as Trump cracked down on what he called “corrosive ideology” at the Smithsonian Institution, demanding a slew of alterations at the world’s largest museum network to more closely align its content with his worldview. They also coincided with the administration’s efforts to remove content related to diversity, equity and inclusion from federal websites...

The museum pulled from its website a page called “Teaching Materials on Nazism and Jim Crow” at some point after Aug. 29, 2025, the last time the page was captured on the Internet Archive. That page provided lesson plans and resources about the connections between American de jure racism and the Nazi regime, including links to sites about “African American Soldiers during World War II” and “Afro-Germans during the Holocaust,” among other topics.

It also linked to a 2018 video on the museum’s YouTube channel featuring a conversation between a Holocaust survivor and a woman whose father was lynched in Alabama. That video is now unlisted, meaning it does not show up on the USHMM’s YouTube page but is still accessible via direct URL.

Leaders at the museum also renamed a one-day civic education workshop designed for college students from “Fragility of Democracy and the Rise of the Nazis” to “Before the Holocaust: German Society and the Nazi Rise to Power.” In an email, obtained by POLITICO, between a senior staff member at the museum’s Levine Institute for Holocaust Education and a staffer planning the workshop, the senior staff member said the change was necessary due to “concerns regarding how the term fragility may be perceived or interpreted in the current climate.”"

Library Director in Tennessee Fired for Refusing to Move Gender-Themed Books; The New York Times, April 2, 2026

Emily Cochrane and Sonia A. Rao, The New York Times ; Library Director in Tennessee Fired for Refusing to Move Gender-Themed Books

The director, Luanne James, was fired at a board meeting for the Rutherford County Library System on Monday after she refused to move certain books to the adult section.

"It is still an uncertain moment for Ms. James, who had taken the position believing it would be where she would finish out her career. And she remains overwhelmed by both the scrutiny and public attention, even if there is nothing she would do differently.

“I’m just a librarian,” she said. “That’s who I am.”"

Tennessee librarian fired for refusing to move LGBTQ books from children’s to adult section; The Hill, April 1, 2026

LEXI LONAS COCHRAN, The Hill; Tennessee librarian fired for refusing to move LGBTQ books from children’s to adult section

"The Rutherford County Library Board in Tennessee fired its top librarian for refusing to move LBGTQ books out of the children’s section.  

The board voted 8-3 Monday to fire library system director Luanne James after she said she would not move more than 100 LGBTQ books from the children to the adult’s section, The Associated Press reported."

Where Censored Words Find a Safe Haven: Inside Minecraft; The New York Times, March 11, 2026

Will Bahr, The New York Times; Where Censored Words Find a Safe Haven: Inside Minecraft

"I’m standing in the middle of a cavernous hall, watching the Statue of Liberty drown in a pool of her own tears. Twin blue streams run from her emerald eyes, collecting in a reservoir that submerges the statue up to her waist.

A series of lecterns line an observation deck beneath this tableau. Each displays a divisive text: Stephen Colbert’s interview with a Senate candidate that he said CBS barred from television; a report on sea-level rise that was scrubbed from government websites in President Trump’s second term; a two-volume interactive timeline of the Jan. 6, 2021, riots at the Capitol.

On the far wall, flanked by torches, is a mural of Ann Telnaes’s rejected cartoon for The Washington Post, featuring tech moguls like Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg bending the knee to Trump, offering up bags of cash. Hanging just above is an enormous American flag, stars and stripes rendered in pixel.

Welcome to the new United States wing of the Uncensored Library, an unlikely stronghold of online press freedom within Minecraft, the best-selling video game of all time."

Judge Rules Pentagon Restrictions on Press Are Unconstitutional; The New York Times, March 20, 2026

Erik Wemple , The New York Times; Judge Rules Pentagon Restrictions on Press Are Unconstitutional

A federal judge tossed parts of the Pentagon’s restrictions on news outlets, saying they violated the First Amendment, in a lawsuit brought by The New York Times.

"A federal judge ruled on Friday that the Pentagon’s restrictions on news outlets violate the First Amendment and issued an order tossing parts of the Defense Department’s policy, handing a victory to The New York Times, which filed suit in December over the restrictions.

Judge Paul Friedman, of U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, also ordered the Pentagon to restore the press passes of seven journalists for The Times. They had surrendered those passes in October instead of signing the policy, which empowered the Pentagon to declare journalists “security risks” and revoke their press passes if they engaged in any conduct that the Pentagon believed threatened national security.

In his 40-page ruling, Judge Friedman wrote that the Pentagon’s policy rewarded reporters who were “willing to publish only stories that are favorable to or spoon-fed by department leadership.”

Siding with an argument advanced by The Times, Judge Friedman added that the Pentagon had given itself too much power to enforce its new rules. The policy also violates journalists’ due process rights under the Fifth Amendment, he said, writing that it “provides no way for journalists to know how they may do their jobs without losing their credentials.”

F.C.C. Chair Threatens to Revoke Broadcasters’ Licenses Over War Coverage; The New York Times, March 14, 2026

Ashley Ahn , The New York Times; F.C.C. Chair Threatens to Revoke Broadcasters’ Licenses Over War Coverage

The comment from Brendan Carr came on the heels of a social media message from President Trump criticizing the news media’s coverage of the war with Iran.

"Brendan Carr, the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, threatened on Saturday to revoke broadcasters’ licenses over their coverage of the war with Iran, his latest move in a campaign to stomp out what he sees as liberal bias in broadcasts."

Social Media Isn’t Just Speech. It’s Also a Defective, Hazardous Product.; The New York Times, March 14, 2026

Tim Wu, The New York Times ; Social Media Isn’t Just Speech. It’s Also a Defective, Hazardous Product.

"For two decades now, social media companies have been virtually untouchable, profitably floating above accusations that they normalize propaganda, addict children and degrade our character. Legally and politically, platforms like Facebook, Instagram and YouTube have been protected by an idea that they and others have promoted: that they are not just innovative technologies but also speech platforms, so that imposing any limits on them would amount to both censorship and a drag on technological progress.

That protection is finally starting to weaken, thanks to a growing realization that social media is also a matter of public health. Seen this way, social media appears as something less newfangled and more familiar: a defective, hazardous product. The current trial of Meta’s Instagram and Google’s YouTube in Los Angeles Superior Court, in which a 20-year-old woman has accused the platforms of designing their products in ways that harmed her mental and physical health, is the clearest sign of this shift.

The case, in which closing arguments were made on Thursday, is the first of many lawsuits brought by thousands of young people, school districts and state attorneys general against companies like Meta, Google, Snap and TikTok. The plaintiffs in these cases do not accuse the companies merely of serving up bad content to young people; they argue that the very design of social media is intentionally engineered to create compulsions and habits of overuse, regardless of the content provided."

Pickens Co. library board fires director without explanation after sweeping policy overhaul; The Post and Courier Greenville, February 25, 2026

 Spencer Donovan, The Post and Courier Greenville; Pickens Co. library board fires director without explanation after sweeping policy overhaul

 "Trustees of the Pickens County Library System voted to remove the library’s director with no explanation after nearly two hours of private discussion.

The move comes after library staff were directed by the board to review more than 86,000 books in the children’s and teen sections, an effort that is expected to last a year. The library canceled a slew of events and stopped interlibrary loans to reassign staff members’ time for the review.

Policy changes in Pickens follow recent fights over the types of books accessible at local libraries nationwide. Many of the debates have surrounded access to books that touch on themes about LGBTQ identity or racism.

During a special called meeting the evening of Feb. 24, the library’s board of trustees voted 5-2 to terminate Executive Director Stephanie Howard effective immediately. Howard, a Pickens County native, started in her role in 2019...

Howard holds a Master of Library Science degree from the University of South Carolina and has more than two decades of library management experience.

In 2025, she was given the Intellectual Freedom Award by the South Carolina Library Association. The annual award “recognizes members of our community who have contributed to an awareness of intellectual freedom and censorship issues in South Carolina libraries,” the SCLA description states."

Censorship Comes for Stephen Colbert; The Atlantic, February 17, 2026

David A. Graham , The Atlantic; Censorship Comes for Stephen Colbert

"Crackdowns on speech by prominent figures pave a way for the government to regulate speech more broadly, which should be concerning for people of any political leaning because the party and people in power can change."