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Academic Misinformation Researchers are Still Under Attack


Researchers analyzing misinformation deserve to be defended — and the campaign to end their work threatens the right to free speech.

For several years, President Donald Trump and his supporters, such as Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, have tried to intimidate and silence academic and civil society researchers whose work has illuminated how misinformation spreads on social media, messaging apps, and other online venues. While the grounds for the ruling were technical — the politicians and activists who brought the suit lacked “standing” to do so — Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s majority opinion forcefully rebuked lower courts for parroting baseless claims about a liberal conspiracy against conservatives. One could also view the ADF’s actions as part of a broader attempt to cripple higher education by threatening colleges and universities that supposedly run afoul of the Trump administration’s efforts to kill diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, permit dissent on topics such as the war in Gaza, and pursue certain kinds of biomedical research.

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