In The Net Delusion: How Not to Liberate the World Evgeny Morozov argues that our utopian, internet-centric thinking holds devastating consequences for the future of democracy. We were promised that the internet would set us free. From the Middle East's 'twitter revolution' to Facebook activism, technology would spread democracy and bring us together as never before. We couldn't have been more wrong. In The Net Delusion Evgeny Morozov shows why internet freedom is an illusion. Not only that - in many cases the net is actually helping oppressive regimes to stifle dissent, track dissidents and keep people pacified, with companies such as Google and Amazon helping them do it. This book shows that free information doesn't mean free people - and that, right now, everyone's liberty is at stake. 'Offers a rare note of wisdom and common sense, on an issue overwhelmed by digital utopians' Malcolm Gladwell 'Passionate, admirable and important' Observer 'The book is a wake-up call to those who think the internet is the solution to all our problems' Daily Telegraph 'A delight ... his demolition job on the embarrassments of "internet freedom" is comprehensive' Independent 'A compelling rebuff ... required reading for everyone' Sunday Times 'Piercing ... convincing ... timely' Financial Times Evgeny Morozov is a contributing editor to Foreign Policy and runs the magazine's influential and widely-quoted 'Net Effect' blog about the Internet's impact on global politics. Morozov is currently a Yahoo! fellow at the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy at Georgetown University.

World War I, given all the rousing "Over-There" songs and in-the-trenches films it inspired, was, at its outset, surprisingly unpopular with the American public. As opposition increased, Woodrow Wilson's presidential administration became intent on stifling antiwar dissent. In his absorbing new book, Eric Chester reveals that out of this turmoil came a heated public discussion on the theory of civil liberties-the basic freedoms that are, theoretically, untouchable by any of the three branches of the U.S. government. The famous "clear and present danger" argument of Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, and the "balance of conflicting interest" theory of law professor Zechariah Chafee, for example, evolved to provide a rationale for courts to act as a limited restraint on autocratic actions of the government. But Chester goes further, to examine an alternative theory: civil liberties exist as absolute rights, rather than being dependent on the specific circumstances of each case. Over the years, the debate about the right to dissent has intensified and become more necessary. This fascinating book explains why, a century after the First World War-and in the era of Trump-we need to know about this.

This book offers a new theoretical framework for free speech by critically analyzing the major justifications for free speech. Unlike most theories that justify free speech on single grounds, this book argues for a justification; namely the double grounded principled approach; that combines and revises the arguments of equal autonomy and democratic participation at the same time. It claims that a revised and critical blending of these two justifications can serve free speech to be grounded on strong principled arguments. The book has both a theoretical and practical focus: first, it discusses the conceptual circumstances of free speech and major theoretical justifications for free speech and then, it applies the developed theoretical framework to the cases of academic freedom, media freedom and hate speech separately. This volume will appeal to readers who are interested in general free speech theories as well as readers who look for an alternative view on specific topics such as academic freedom, media freedom and hate speech.

Free speech and freedom of the press were often suppressed amid the social turbulence of the Progressive Era and World War I. As muckrakers, feminists, pacifists, anarchists, socialists, and communists were arrested or censored for their outspoken views, many of them turned to a Manhattan lawyer named Gilbert Roe to keep them in business and out of jail. Roe was the principal trial lawyer of the Free Speech League-a precursor of the American Civil Liberties Union. His cases involved such activists as Emma Goldman, Lincoln Steffens, Margaret Sanger, Max Eastman, Upton Sinclair, John Reed, and Eugene Debs, as well as the socialist magazine The Masses and the New York City Teachers Union. A friend of Wisconsin's progressive senator Robert La Follette since their law partnership as young men, Roe defended "Fighting Bob" when the Senate tried to expel him for opposing America's entry into World War I. In articulating and upholding Americans' fundamental right to free expression against charges of obscenity, libel, espionage, sedition, or conspiracy during turbulent times, Roe was rarely successful in the courts. But his battles illuminate the evolution of free speech doctrine and practice in an era when it was under heavy assault. His greatest victory, including the 1917 decision by Judge Learned Hand in The Masses Publishing Co. v. Patten, is still influential today.

Voltaire's comment--"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"--is frequently quoted by defenders of free speech. Yet it is rare to find someone prepared to defend all freedom of speech, especially if the views expressed are obnoxious or obviously false. So where do we draw the line? How important is our right to freedom of speech? In this accessible and up-to-date Very Short Introduction, Nigel Warburton covers a wide range of controversial free-speech issues, from Holocaust denial and pornography to the status of modern copyright law. The book offers a concise guide to many of the vexing issues concerning our right to speak freely, including: Should a civilized society set limits on freedom of speech? How can we balance free speech with the sensitivities of religious and minority groups? How have digital technology and the Internet changed the debate?
About the Series: Combining authority with wit, accessibility, and style, Very Short Introductions offer an introduction to some of life's most interesting topics. Written by experts for the newcomer, they demonstrate the finest contemporary thinking about the central problems and issues in hundreds of key topics, from philosophy to Freud, quantum theory to Islam.

Winner 2008 Amnesty International Consumer Magazine of the Year About This Issue The internet has not only been a revolution for free speech - it's reinvented censorship. Cyber utopia has brought with it new forms of control - and it's not just authoritarian regimes that are limiting access to what we read and watch. Democracies are also curbing our right to information, whether in the name of child protection or copyright. Index on Censorship takes a close look at the new rules of the game, with contributions from bloggers, activists, journalists and experts around the world. About Index on Censorship From 2010 SAGE is proud to be the publisher of Index on Censorship, the award-winning magazine devoted to protecting and promoting free expression. International in outlook, outspoken in comment, Index reports on free expression violations around the world, publishes banned writing and shines a light on vital free expression issues through original, accessible and intelligent commentary and analysis, publishing some of the world's finest writers. Published four times a year (March, June, September, December), Index is available via annual subscription or to purchase on an issue-by-issue basis. Forthcoming 2010 issues: Free Speech and Music; Radio and the Promotion of Free Expression

This book attempts to analyse the concept of religious expression vis-a-vis freedom of speech in Malaysia from the philosophical, political and theoretical perspectives. It begins by discussing the major sources of religious expression that are firmly rooted in the societal and religious beliefs, constitution and legislation of the country. It also examines multiple facets of the Islamization policy in the country and to what extent such policy affects the exercise of domestic religious expression. The problems and challenges of domestic religious expression, theoretically and practically, will also be examined including the issues of radicalization and terrorism. After a change of power from the Barisan Nasional (BN) to Pakatan Harapan (PH) in 2018, this book attempts to explain PH's approach in dealing with the issue of Islam and religious expression in Malaysia. Lastly, this book intends to identify and observe how Malaysian society and the state react to the issue of religious expression.

How to Think Like an Activist offers a space for budding activists to learn from the past and look to the future. A lot of talk around changing the world gets stuck in theory, but this is about action. From small daily commitments to larger ongoing projects, this book offers tangible ways to start building the world you want to live in - now. Right now, we're experiencing a new chapter in the history of activism. The social, environmental, and political stakes are larger than ever. But so is the impact that we can have as individuals and as communities. To have a voice in society once meant power, money and, status. But now, with the rise of social media and the internet we all have the ability to defend the causes that matter most to us and reshape the world. But during a time where everyone calls themselves an activist, what does the title actually mean? And how do you begin to make an impact on issues that feel so huge and overwhelming? Filled with inspirational quotes from past leaders, historical facts about important movements as well as daily protests, How to Think Like an Activist will help set you on the path to your new activist life. The Survive the Modern World series tackles big subjects in a fun and digestible way. The tone is frank and chatty, but the content is comprehensive. Upskill and expand your knowledge with these accessible pocket guides.

In January 2012, millions participated in the now-infamous "Internet blackout" against the Stop Online Piracy Act, protesting the power it would have given intellectual property holders over the Internet. However, while SOPA's withdrawal was heralded as a victory for an open Internet, a small group of corporations, tacitly backed by the US and other governments, have implemented much of SOPA via a series of secret, handshake agreements. Drawing on extensive interviews, Natasha Tusikov details the emergence of a global regime in which large Internet firms act as regulators for powerful intellectual property owners, challenging fundamental notions of democratic accountability.

Institutions are norms that undergird organizations and are reflected in laws and practices. Over time, institutions take root and persist as they are path dependent and thus change resistant. Therefore, it is puzzling when institutions change. One such puzzle has been the enactment of the Right to Information (RTI) Act in India in 2005, which brought about institutional change by transforming the 'information regime'. Why did the government upend the norm of secrecy, which had historically been entrenched within the Indian State? This book uses archival material, internal government documents, and interviews to understand the why and how of institutional change. It demonstrates that the institutional change resulted from 'ideas' emerging gradually and incrementally, leading to a 'tipping point'. About the IDSA Series: This series interrogates the interplay between globalization, the state, and social forces in the making and un-making of institutions in South Asia. Why do institutions persist and change? Do we need to transcend materialism and dwell in ideas and culture as well to understand why institutions perform and fail? The first book in the Institutions and Development in South Asia series, this volume studies the historical institutionalism in the information regime in India by presenting an alternative narrative about the evolution of the RTI Act.