Topic

First Amendment

22 stories from Planck Standard. Latest: September 21, 2026.

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Politics
CNN, MS NOW and Politico Sued Trump, Susie Wiles, Steven Cheung and the Secret Service Director Monday to Get Their White House Press Passes Back, Calling the Ban 'a Direct Assault on the First Amendment'

The three outlets asked a federal judge in Washington for a temporary restraining order after their reporters were turned away at the gate Saturday and CNN was pulled from Monday's travel pool. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent suggested the 'off-ramp' might be 'a change in coverage.'

Sep 21 4 min read
Politics
Trump Banned CNN, MS NOW and Politico From the White House for 'FICTION and LIES,' Said 'Other Outlets' Will Follow, and Called the Times and the Post Fake News When Asked

The White House Correspondents' Association says the president himself described the move as a 'ban on the free press.' CNN, Politico and MS NOW all say they will fight it, and the AP's lawsuit over its own 2025 ban is still in court.

Sep 19 4 min read
Politics
Seventeen Scientists Filed a Class Action Against the NIH Over a 235-Word Screening List That Flags 'Gender,' 'Latinx' and 'Climate Change'

The ACLU-backed suit names Jay Bhattacharya, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and DOGE. One plaintiff's Alzheimer's study was cut off mid-appointment. Another says she can no longer describe 15 years of work on sexual harassment in medicine without tripping the filter.

Sep 17 5 min read
Politics
The DOJ Secretly Ordered LinkedIn to Hand Over 1,900 Messages From Six Users, Including a Reporter, in a Leak Hunt and Barred the Company From Telling Them

A Fourth Circuit panel heard arguments Tuesday in a case that has been sealed since November. Judge Harvie Wilkinson, a Reagan appointee, asked whether an 'overbroad disclosure order that reveals sources' compromises a reporter's interest.

Sep 16 4 min read
Politics
A Federal Judge Blocked the 'Loyalty Question' on Federal Job Applications

Judge George O'Toole Jr. found the essay prompt 'calls for the applicant's personal views on a political topic' and likely violates the First Amendment. It had appeared on more than 70,000 postings for nonpartisan civil service jobs since May 2025. OPM has until the end of the week to pull it.

Sep 15 4 min read
Politics
A Judge Let the Pentagon Fire Three Stars and Stripes Journalists Over Interviews They Were Cleared to Give

Judge Trevor McFadden found the publisher, editor and a reporter were likely speaking as employees rather than private citizens, which puts their words outside the First Amendment's protection.

Sep 6 4 min read
Top News
A Federal Judge Told the Administration It Cannot Deport Students for Criticizing Israel: 'Freedom of Speech Is Illusory'

Judge Noel Wise ruled for The Stanford Daily, whose international staff said they were afraid to report on the war. It is the second federal court in a year to find the deportation policy unconstitutional.

Aug 29 3 min read
Politics
Three Stars and Stripes Journalists Sued Hegseth After Reporting That 5,000 Sailors Ran Short of Food and Water at Sea

The publisher, the editor-in-chief and a reporter say they were served separation notices for insubordination after the paper documented conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln.

Aug 28 3 min read
Top News
Judge Voids Trump's Ban on Anthropic: 'The Empty Invocation of National Security Is Not a Blank Check'

U.S. District Judge Rita Lin permanently barred the administration from enforcing a supply-chain-risk designation she said was retaliation for the AI company's criticism of the Pentagon.

Aug 28 4 min read
Politics
Supreme Court Lets Texas Force App Stores to Verify Every User's Age, Dealing Apple and Google a Defeat

In an unsigned order with no noted dissents, the justices refused to block Texas's App Store Accountability Act, the first law of its kind requiring age checks and parental consent before minors can download apps.

Jul 10 3 min read
Politics
Supreme Court Strikes Down Limits on Party Spending Coordinated With Candidates, 6-3

Writing for the majority in NRSC v. FEC, Justice Kavanaugh said decades-old caps on coordinated party expenditures violate the First Amendment — unleashing party money months before the midterms.

Jul 5 3 min read
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Politics
'No Kings' Protests Sweep All 50 States on Trump's 80th Birthday as Organizers Pivot to a Star-Studded Concert

Organizers projected more than 2,000 demonstrations and watch parties for Flag Day, anchored by a 'Rise Up, Sing Out' concert in New York featuring Bette Midler, Patti Smith and Julia Roberts.

Jun 14 3 min read
Top News
Judge Blocks National Parks From Removing 'Negative' Signs and Depictions of Slavery

Federal court accuses Trump administration of censorship for taking down materials at parks across the country.

Jun 13 2 min read
Tech
Trump FCC Asks Public Whether ABC's 'The View' Qualifies as News Show

Federal Communications Commission launches unprecedented public comment period questioning the classification of the popular daytime talk show.

May 22 3 min read
Tech
Man Wins $835,000 Settlement After Sheriff Jailed Him Over Charlie Kirk Social Media Post

Federal court awards substantial damages in First Amendment case involving month-long imprisonment for protected political speech.

May 20 2 min read
Politics
Speaker Johnson's 'Rededicate 250' Prayer Rally on the National Mall Sparks Church-State Backlash

A Christian revival event tied to America's 250th anniversary and headlined by the House speaker drew tens of thousands to the Mall, with critics calling it a 'government-run church service.'

May 17 3 min read
Politics
James Comey Indicted a Second Time Over '86 47' Instagram Photo of Seashells

Federal prosecutors in North Carolina charge the former FBI director with making a threat against President Trump, in a case legal scholars say tests the limits of the First Amendment.

May 8 3 min read
Top News
Trump Threatens to Jail Journalists Who Protect Sources in Iran Fighter Jet Coverage

President indicates he will demand media outlets reveal sources behind reporting on Iran's successful strike against US aircraft and crew.

Apr 7 2 min read
Top News
Supreme Court Expands Police Qualified Immunity in 6-3 Ruling, Making Civil Rights Lawsuits Harder to Win

In Zorn v. Linton, the majority ruled that an officer who arrested a nonviolent protester was shielded from liability because the specific circumstances weren't 'clearly established' as unconstitutional by prior case law.

Mar 28 5 min read
Top News
Supreme Court Declines Press Freedom Case as Justice Sotomayor Warns of 'Blatant First Amendment Violation'

The Court's refusal to hear the Texas journalist arrest case leaves in place a controversial ruling that critics say threatens basic reporting practices nationwide.

Mar 23 3 min read
Politics
Federal Judge Strikes Down Pentagon's Press Restrictions as Unconstitutional in Major First Amendment Win for New York Times

U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman ruled that the Defense Department's October 2025 policy — which threatened to revoke credentials from journalists who gathered unapproved information — violated the First and Fifth Amendments.

Mar 23 4 min read
Politics
Federal Judge Orders 1,042 Voice of America Staff Reinstated, Declaring Kari Lake's Actions Unlawful and Void

Judge Royce Lamberth ruled that Lake 'repeatedly thumbed her nose' at statutory requirements and that her appointment violated the Constitution's Appointments Clause, voiding the mass layoffs that had gutted VOA from 49 languages to just 4.

Mar 20 5 min read