Civil Liberties
1,361 Articles
How Data Privacy Laws Can Fight Fake News
Governments from Russia to Iran have exploited social media’s connectivity, openness, and polarization to influence elections, sow discord, and drown out dissent. While responses…
Border Agents’ Secret Facebook Group Highlights Social Media Vetting Risks for Immigrants
Government social media monitoring is ripe for abuse in any context, but the implications of Customs and Border Protection's environment of racism and lack of oversight demand…
Congress Tackles the “100-Mile” Border Zone for Federal Checkpoints
A long-festering issue affecting the entire U.S. border on the north, south, east, and west is finally getting congressional attention: the so-called “100-mile border zone”…
Airbnb’s Listings in Disputed Territories: A Tortured Compromise
Under the terms of two recent court settlements, Airbnb will continue to offer rentals in Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territories. That reversal raises potentially…
Democratic Debates Round 2: Time to Ask About America’s Courts
When the Democratic U.S. presidential candidates face off in Detroit for their second debates July 30-31, they or the moderators should raise what will be one of the most pressing…
The Supreme Court Just Made It Easier to Conceal Abuse of Migrant Detainees
The U.S. Supreme Court has reversed a half-century of precedent on citizens’ rights to know what their government is doing, by making it more difficult for the public to probe…
The Massive Perils of the Latest U.N. Resolution on Terrorism
A newly proposed U.N. Security Council resolution expanding anti-terrorism requirements for member States targets the nexus with organized crime. But like so many counterterrorism…
Assange’s Indictment: A Threat to Everyone
Had the precedent of the Justice Department’s prosecution of Julian Assange existed in the past, there are numerous cases that could have resulted in a prosecution under the…
When Constitutional Law and Government Hacking Collide: A Landmark U.K. Ruling Is Relevant on Both Sides of the Pond
The U.K. Supreme Court's landmark judgment in R (Privacy International) v Investigatory Powers Tribunal and others sets an important precedent for oversight of questions of law…
Journalist Watchlist Raises Specter of Civil Rights-Era Secret Surveillance
Throughout his campaign and now his presidency, historians have drawn parallels between President Trump’s treatment of the news media and the Nixon White House’s efforts to…
Balancing the Law and Reporting: Reflections on the Assange Indictment and What It Means for Journalists
The superseding indictment of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has again sent First Amendment guardians to the ramparts, when what’s needed is a calm discussion of what threat…
The Snowden Effect, Six Years On
Six years ago, the world was introduced to a previously unknown government contractor who revealed the National Security Agency (NSA) was conducting an unparalleled level of warrantless…