Skip to main content

- What We Do
- What we defend
- Have your rights been violated?
  If you face retaliation over protected speech, reach out to FIRE to learn more about how we can protect your rights.
  Submit a Case
- Make a difference
- Subscribe to FIRE Updates
  Stay up to date with FIRE's biggest cases and battles for free expression.
  Subscribe
- Take Action
  Across the nation, free speech rights are under attack. Join us in defending this essential quality of liberty. Make your voice heard and join a campaign.
  Protect Free Speech
- Resources
- College Free Speech Rankings
  Presented by FIRE and College Pulse, the 2026 College Free Speech Rankings is the largest survey of campus free expression ever performed.
  Explore Rankings
- National Speech Index
  The National Speech Index is a new quarterly component of America’s Political Pulse, an ongoing weekly survey that will allow researchers to track shifting free speech sentiment in America over time.
  Learn More
Colleges
News
Cases
Submit a Case
Newsletter

So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast

So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast takes an uncensored look at the world of free expression through the law, philosophy, and stories that define your right to free speech. Hosted by FIRE's Nico Perrino.

New episodes post every other Thursday.

Nico Perrino host of the So to Speak Podcast 2024.jpg

Thomas Paine's rise and fall

Thomas Paine's rise and fall

So to Speak: The Free Speech PodcastEp. 261

January 15, 2026

Thomas Paine arrived in America in 1774 with little to his name and a long record of personal failure behind him...

All Episodes

Free speech and 'the executive power' with Advisory Opinions

September 4, 2025

So to Speak: The Free Speech PodcastEp. 251

Free speech and 'the executive power' with Advisory Opinions

Civil rights, hate speech, and the First Amendment

August 28, 2025

So to Speak: The Free Speech PodcastEp. 250

Civil rights, hate speech, and the First Amendment

FIRE Reacts -- Where does Harvard go from here? With Larry Summers

August 12, 2025

So to Speak: The Free Speech PodcastEp. 249

FIRE Reacts -- Where does Harvard go from here? With Larry Summers

Commercial speech and the First Amendment

August 6, 2025

So to Speak: The Free Speech PodcastEp. 248

The state of commercial speech

Justin Amash

July 24, 2025

So to Speak: The Free Speech PodcastEp. 247

Justin Amash

Tech check -- AI moratorium, Character AI lawsuit, FTC, Digital Services Act, and FSC v. Paxton

July 10, 2025

So to Speak: The Free Speech PodcastEp. 246

Tech check -- AI moratorium, Character AI lawsuit, FTC, Digital Services Act, and FSC v. Paxton

The Supreme Court's decision in Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton

June 27, 2025

So to Speak: The Free Speech PodcastEp. 245

The Supreme Court's decision in Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton

Censoring lawmakers, T-shirts, and seashells

June 5, 2025

So to Speak: The Free Speech PodcastEp. 244

Censoring lawmakers, T-shirts, and seashells

Heather Mac Donald on Trump and free speech

May 22, 2025

So to Speak: The Free Speech PodcastEp. 243

Heather Mac Donald on Trump and free speech

Is cancel culture dead?

May 8, 2025

So to Speak: The Free Speech PodcastEp. 242

Is cancel culture dead?

Share

Share this selection via email