The Conformity Crisis - Sarah McLaughlin On The Quiet Erosion Of Free Speech

📌 Buy Tickets for Sarah's NZ Tour: 📅 Tour dates: 📍 Auckland - Sun 19 April 📍 Tauranga - Tue 21 April 📍 Wellington - Wed 22 April 📍 Christchurch - Thu 23 April 📍 Dunedin - Fri 24 April We talk with Sarah McLaughlin from FIRE about why free speech threats spread across borders faster than most people notice, especially online. We dig into how self-censorship, “online safety” rules, and hate speech laws can shrink debate in universities and everyday life, including here in New Zealand. • internet censorship and regulation crossing borders quickly • young people bearing the brunt of speech control and pushing back • universities self-censoring under pressure from foreign governments and funding • why Europe and the UK matter for Kiwi free speech debates • the UK Online Safety Act and spillover effects on global platforms • under-16 bans, age verification, anonymity risks, and VPN crackdowns • why hate speech laws can backfire and empower the wrong people • defending a principle rather than defending a person If you enjoyed this episode, please

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The Conformity Crisis - Sarah McLaughlin On The Quiet Erosion Of Free Speech is an episode from Free Speech Union's Podcast by Free Speech Union.

This episode is 61:35 long.

This episode was published on Mar 30, 2026.

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