In this episode, Nadine Strossen, New York Law School professor emerita and former president of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), and Jacob Mchangama, the founder and executive director of The Future of Free Speech, discuss the history, enduring debate, and ongoing importance of free expression in our changing world. Julie Silverbrook, chief content and learning officer at the National Constitution Center, moderates.
This program is part of the NCC Across America series and is presented in partnership with the City of Asylum Bookstorein Pittsburgh, PA. It was recorded on July 21, 2026.
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This episode was produced and mixed by Bill Pollock. With production support from Charles Sahm. Research was provided by Anna Salvatore and Tristan Worsham.
Participants
Jacob Mchangama is the founder and executive director of The Future of Free Speech. He is a research professor at Vanderbilt University and a Senior Fellow at The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE). In 2018, he was a visiting scholar at Columbia’s Global Freedom of Expression Center. He has commented extensively on free speech and human rights in outlets including The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, The Economist, Foreign Affairs, and Foreign Policy. Jacob has published in academic and peer-reviewed journals, including Human Rights Quarterly, Policy Review, and Amnesty International’s Strategic Studies. He is the producer and narrator of the podcast “Clear and Present” Danger: A History of Free Speech and the critically acclaimed book Free Speech: A History From Socrates to Social Media. He is the co-author of The Future of Free Speech: Reversing the Global Decline of Democracy’s Most Essential Freedom. He has received numerous awards for his work on free speech and human rights.
Nadine Strossen is professor emerita at New York Law School and senior fellow at FIRE (the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression). She was president of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) free-speech to 2008. An internationally acclaimed free-speech scholar and advocate, who regularly addresses diverse audiences and provides media commentary around the world, Strossen serves on the advisory boards of the ACLU and several academic freedom/free-speech organizations. She is the host and project consultant for Free To Speak, a three-hour documentary film series distributed on public television in 2023. Her most recent books are: The War On Words: 10 Arguments Against Free Speech—And Why They Fail (coauthored with FIRE President Greg Lukianoff) (2025); Free Speech: What Everyone Needs to Know (2023); and HATE: Why We Should Resist It with Free Speech, Not Censorship (2018). In 2023, Strossen received the National Coalition Against Censorship’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Free Speech.
Julie Silverbrook is chief content and learning officer at the National Constitution Center, where she leads the strategy, development, and delivery of the Center’s content, public programs, and educational initiatives, advancing its mission of nonpartisan constitutional education and civil dialogue. She oversees the creation of public-facing constitutional content and works to ensure the Center’s programs, scholarly engagement, and educational resources operate as a coordinated national strategy serving students, educators, families, and lifelong learners across the country.
Additional Resources
- The First Amendment
- Jacob Mchangama, Free Speech: A History From Socrates to Social Media (2022)
- Jacob Mchangama and Jeff Kosseff, The Future of Free Speech: Reversing the Global Decline of Democracy’s Most Essential Freedom (2026)
- Nadine Strossen and Greg Lukianoff, The War On Words: 10 Arguments Against Free Speech—And Why They Fail (2025)
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