FIREwire — June 20, 2025

X sues New York, PEN concerned over deported Aussie, and more

Welcome FIREwire, your weekly roundup of the biggest free speech stories in America. Every week, we’ll bring you headlines shaping the fight for free expression in our courts, our classrooms, and in our culture.

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Musk’s X sues New York over social media hate speech law

Musk’s X Corporation has filed a lawsuit challenging New York’s new law S895B, which requires social platforms to report every six months on their content moderation practices or face a penalty of $15,000 per day.

X argues this amounts to compelled editorial transparency and violates both the U.S. and New York Constitutions.

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PEN America raises alarm over deporting Aussie writer

Australian writer Alistair Kitchen claimed on Bluesky that after landing in Los Angeles, he was detained for 12 hours by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and deported back to Australia over his reporting on the Columbia student protests.

“The CBP explicitly said to me, the reason you have been detained is because of your writing on the Columbia student protests,” he told Guardian Australia on Sunday.

PEN America called it “gravely concerning” to see someone “turned away at the border due to their writings on student protests,” adding, “That is anti-democratic.”

But a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson said Kitchen was deported for lying about drug use on his visa-waiver application.

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ALSO IN THE NEWS

The Los Angeles Press Club filed a federal lawsuit against the city and police chief, claiming officers used excessive force such as tear gas and rubber bullets against reporters during immigration protests.

The D.C. Circuit temporarily paused a lower court ruling, letting the White House exclude AP from select events.

The U.S. has resumed student visa processing but now requires applicants to make their social media public and free of anti-American sentiment.