Laura Loomer’s Greatest Hits; NewsGuard's Reality Check, September 13, 2024

NewsGuard's Reality Check; Laura Loomer’s Greatest Hits

"Loomer has initiated or promoted 17 of the provably false narratives on significant news topics in NewsGuard’s catalog of False Narratives.

Conservative commentator Laura Loomer has been in the headlines this week amid reports that she has been a regular on former President Donald Trump’s campaign plane and has steered him toward promoting conspiracy theories. These include the debunked claims of Haitian migrants abducting and eating cats and dogs in Springfield, Ohio.  

Loomer’s claims have long been a subject of interest at NewsGuard. Here’s what we know:"

How free speech is under attack in the U.S.; CBS News, February 20, 2022

CBS News; How free speech is under attack in the U.S.

""I would argue that the culture of free speech is under attack in the U.S.," said Jacob Mchangama, the author of "Free Speech," a new book that documents the history of free expression. "And without a robust culture of free speech based on tolerance, the laws and constitutional protection will ultimately erode.

"People both on the left and the right are sort of coming at free speech from different angles with different grievances, that point to a general loss of faith in the First Amendment."

The free-speech erosion is even happening in schools. Since January last year, according to PEN America, Republican lawmakers have introduced more than 150 state laws that would restrict how teachers can discuss race, sexual orientation, and gender identity in the classroom.

Jennifer Given, who teaches high-school history in Hollis, New Hampshire, said of the laws, "It's about making up false narratives to further a political goal of your own. 

"It's a really scary time to be a teacher," she told Pogue. "We're self-censoring, We are absolutely avoiding certain things and ideas in an effort to stay within the lines as best we understand them.""