International borders have always supplied justifications and pretexts for censorship and surveillance. During the Cold War, the government denied visas to foreign artists, writers, and scholars whose political views the government wanted to delegitimize or suppress. This practice was resurrected during the “war on terror.” Today, the government uses its expansive authority over the border to justify the surveillance of social media, the interrogation of travelers about their political and religious views, the search of travelers’ laptops and cellphones, the imposition of limits on Americans’ right to engage with foreign speakers and to access foreign communications platforms, and the suspension of the constitutional rules that would ordinarily apply to the surveillance of Americans’ emails and telephone calls. At the same time, technologies have reshaped what the border means, and how ideas and information travel across borders. Foreign governments have exercised their authority to reach through the U.S. border to try to influence Americans and suppress their own ex-patriots in new ways. On our third season, “Views on First: Speech & the Border,” hosts and Knight Institute attorneys Xiangnong (George) Wang, Anna Diakun, Ramya Krishnan, and Alex Abdo work through these challenges with the help of legal scholars, experts, and real people living at the intersection of speech and the border.

“Speech & the Border,” dropping on November 13, 2024.

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Preview: Speech & the Border

We’ve all been hearing a lot about “the border”—in news headlines, candidates’ speeches, and political debates. On our third season of “Views on First: Speech & the Border,” we examine the frontiers of censorship and surveillance. Each episode, you'll hear from a Knight Institute lawyer involved in cases aimed at protecting vital First Amendment rights at the border and beyond.

Transcript: “Speech & the Border” Preview

Season Credits

Co-Producers: Ann Marie Awad and Kushal Dev
Hosts and Writers: George Wang, Anna Diakun, Ramya Krishnan, and Alex Abdo
Executive Producer: Candace White
Interviewing and creative direction: Carrie DeCell
Music: Grayton Newman and Epidemic Sound
Engineer: Patrice Mondragon
Fact-Checkers: Roni Gal-Oz and Teddy Wyche
Art: Nash Weerasekera