The Free Speech Union

Is Donald Trump undermining press freedom?

Veteran US journalist and SpyTalk editor and podcast host Jeff Stein joins David Rose on the Free Speech Union podcast to discuss Trump’s clashes with the media and the million-dollar defamation lawsuit that could have cost Stein his home. He explains how Substack Defender funded his successful legal defence, why costly libel actions can silence independent journalists and what his case means for free speech in the US and UK.

#freespeech #censorshipdebate #pressfreedom

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Join us for a live recording of the podcast at the Battle of Ideas Festival on Saturday 17 October in Central London: https://www.battleofideas.org.uk/session/podcast-live-the-free-speech-union-on-the-free-speech-frontline/ (FSU members can get 20% off by clicking on the link in the members' email from 22 September 2026.)

Follow Jeff Stein Substack: https://substack.com/@spytalk

Spytalk podcast: https://www.spytalk.co/podcast

Subscribe to the Free Speech Union podcast channel for more interviews on freedom of speech, censorship, media freedom and civil liberties.

A shocking video of police turning up on the doorstep of a teenager's home went viral in 2025. Officers demanded devices, barged into the house, and seized a young girl's phone over an unverified social media allegation.

Jake Hurfurt of Big Brother Watch investigated what happened next. What he uncovered is shocking.

In this episode of the Free Speech Union podcast, Jake joins the FSU's David Rose to unpack what really happened in that viral case, and how it fits into a nationwide crisis of over 62,000 communications arrests across the UK.

Read Jake Hurfurt's report "Britain's Free Speech Problem", published by Big Brother Watch: https://bigbrotherwatch.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Britains-Free-Speech-Problem-070926.pdf

#freespeech #censorshipdebate

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Subscribe to our podcast channel for more discussions on civil liberties, free expression, and countering cancel culture.

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In this episode of The Free Speech Union podcast, Connie Shaw speaks with Reverend Dr Bernard Randall, who underwent a seven-year battle after delivering a sermon encouraging pupils at Trent College in Nottinghamshire to think critically and respect diverse viewpoints on sex and gender.

Trent College was a Christian school and had employed Bernard as its chaplain. But the school had adopted a woke agenda. After Bernard's sermon, he was banned from preaching in the school chapel. He was also secretly reported to the government's counter extermism programme, Prevent. Bernard describes years of tribunal proceedings and Church of England safeguarding investigations. And the importance of standing up for freedom of conscience. 

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#freespeech #censorshipdebate #religiousfreedom

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Stephen Gray, a retired police officer and foster parent, tells Connie Shaw how a reposted Facebook joke led to police at his door, the seizure of his shotgun certificate, a prosecution under the Communications Act and a criminal conviction.

He explains why he believes the joke made a political point about child marriage in Islam, why he is appealing the conviction with the Free Speech Union’s support, and what his case says about policing, the CPS and the shrinking space for lawful but offensive speech.

Please help the Free Speech Union fund Stephen's appeal against conviction: https://freespeechunion.org/fundraisers/blasphemy-fundraiser

#freespeech #censorshipdebate #blasphemylaw

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The death of Jason Arday has triggered calls for press regulation and censorship, including an “Arday’s Law” to limit the number of articles written about one person.

Graeme Wood is a free speech absolutist and a staff writer at The Atlantic. He joins the Free Speech Union’s Director of Research and Policy, David Rose, to discuss the Jason Arday plagiarism scandal, the backlash against journalists, and why calls for state regulation of the press should alarm anyone who values free speech.

#freespeech #censorshipdebate #pressfreedom

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Read Graeme Wood's article in The Atlantic: "Jason Arday’s Final Self-Delusion Elevating a fraud is shameful. Exposing one isn’t." https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/08/jason-arday-death-lies-delusion/688311/

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