Suzanne Nossel, PEN America’s former CEO, has been named President and CEO of Freedom House. She is author of Dare to Speak: Defending Free Speech for All. Since joining PEN America 2013, she doubled the organization’s staff, budget, and membership, spearheaded the unification with PEN Center USA in Los Angeles and the establishment of a Washington, D.C. office, and overseen groundbreaking work on free expression in Hong Kong and China, Myanmar, Eurasia, and the United States. She is a leading voice on free expression issues in the United States and globally, writing and being interviewed frequently for national and international media outlets. Her prior career spanned government service and leadership roles in the corporate and nonprofit sectors. She has served as the Chief Operating Officer of Human Rights Watch and as Executive Director of Amnesty International USA. During the first term of the Obama Administration, Nossel served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for International Organizations, where she led U.S. engagement in the United Nations and multilateral institutions, on human rights and humanitarian issues. During the Clinton Administration, Nossel was Deputy to the U.S. Ambassador for UN Management and Reform at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations, where she was the lead negotiator in settling U.S. arrears to the world body. During her corporate career, Nossel served as Vice President of U.S. Business Development for Bertelsmann and as Vice President for Strategy and Operations for the Wall Street Journal. Nossel coined the term “Smart Power,” which was the title of a 2004 article she published in Foreign Affairs Magazine and later became the theme of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s tenure in office. Nossel is a featured columnist for Foreign Policy magazine and has published op-eds in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, LA Times, and dozens of other outlets, as well as scholarly articles in Foreign Affairs, Dissent, Democracy, and other journals. Nossel served on the Board of Directors of the Tides Foundation until 2021. She is a former senior fellow at the Century Foundation, the Center for American Progress, and the Council on Foreign Relations. Nossel is a magna cum laude graduate of both Harvard College and Harvard Law School.
In 2021, Nossel was selected as a member of the Oversight Board, an independent body using human rights principles to adjudicate decisions on Facebook and Instagram. Read more about her appointment here.
Dare to Speak
A vital, necessary playbook for navigating and defending free speech today by the CEO of PEN America, Dare To Speak provides a pathway for promoting free expression while also cultivating a more inclusive public culture.
Cited in “Symbiotic Security and Free Speech” by Michael J. Glennon.
Recent Publications & Appearances
2024
Don’t Downplay Risks of AI for Democracy
Just Security, August 28, 2024
The Fate of American Democracy Depends on Free Speech
American Academy of Arts & Sciences, Summer 2024
Digital Diplomacy’s New Dawn—Decoding Foreign Disinformation and Fostering Resilience
Council on Foreign Relations, May 31, 2024
Suzanne Nossel on “The Real Culture Wars” Between Democracy and Autocracy
Amanpour and Company, March 7, 2024
The Real Culture Wars Between Democracy and Autocracy
Foreign Affairs, February 29, 2024
Is the solution to offensive speech more speech?
PBS, February 22, 2024
How universities can restore free speech and constructive conversations
Boston Globe, February 12, 2024
Threats to free speech
PBS, February 11, 2024
DEI and free speech can go hand in hand
CNN, January 13, 2024
2023
The Dangers of Curtailing Free Speech on Campus
TIME, December 15, 2023
Israel-Hamas war spotlights increasing concerns over free speech on college campuses
WBUR, November 29, 2023
A Free-Speech Fix for Our Divided Campuses
Wall Street Journal, November 17, 2023
‘She is relentless’: The extraordinary resilience of jailed Iranian activist Narges Mohammadi
CNN, November 10, 2023
Why College Presidents Seem Flummoxed
CNN, November 6, 2023
Cultural Decoupling From China Is Not the Answer
Foreign Policy, September 26, 2023
PEN America CEO Suzanne Nossel on Dare to Speak
C-Span, September 24, 2023
Book-Burning Bans Are the Wrong Way to Fight Religious Hatred
The Wall Street Journal, September 21, 2023
A canceled JCC book talk shows Jews are entering a dangerous era of self-censorship
Forward, September 8, 2023
The Overlooked but Potent Artist in the Fight Against Autocracy
Just Security, August 28, 2023
Hollywood’s Fight Against A.I. Will Affect Us All
The New Republic, July 31, 2023
Banning government officials from talking to Big Tech is no win for free speech
Los Angeles Times, July 9, 2023
How America Can Win Over the Global South
Foreign Affairs, July 7, 2023
Book Bans & Free Speech
Stay Tuned with Preet, June 28, 2023
What to Take Down, What to Leave Up, and Why
Aspen Ideas Festival, June 27, 2023
This Is How to Keep Academic Freedom Alive in America
Newsweek, March 23, 2023
The drag show bans sweeping the US are a chilling attack on free speech
The Guardian, March 10, 2023
Ron DeSantis abandons former First Amendment defense
CNN, February 23, 2023
There’s No Quick Fix for Social Media
The Wall Street Journal, January 20, 2023
Ukrainians Are Defending Their History, Thought, Art, and Culture, Too
TIME, January 6, 2023
2022
Threats to Free Expression, with Suzanne Nossel
The President’s Inbox, September 27, 2022
#VelshiBannedBookClub and PEN America go deep on Banned Books Week
MSNBC, September 24, 2022
Parents Should Have a Voice in Their Kids’ Education But We’ve Gone Too Far
TIME, September 20, 2022
Delete, Ban, Cancel: Public Understanding of Free Speech and Censorship
West Virginia University, September 20, 2022
Some Assembly Required: Why the UN’s Broadest Forum Matters More Than Ever
Foreign Affairs, September 19, 2022
Salman Rushdie’s entire life has been an act of defiance
The Guardian, August 13, 2022
The Old Human Rights Playbook Won’t Work Anymore
Foreign Policy, August 2, 2022
Academic Freedom’s Proxy Wars
Chronicle of Higher Education, June 27, 2022
Reinvigorating and renewing democracy | The Second Century London Conference – Chatham House
Chatham House, June 23, 2022
Book Banning and the First Amendment
Freedom Forum, June 21, 2022
How to Help Ukraine Fight Cultural Erasure
Foreign Policy, May 16, 2022
Book Bans Threaten Students Nationwide. Here’s How Philanthropy Can Fight Back.
The Chronicle of Philanthropy, April 20, 2022
Dare to Speak, Dare to Listen: Protecting Free Speech on the Frontlines
Iowa State University, April 13, 2022
COVID Update; City Council District 13; Debating Cancel Culture; Work Self vs. Home Self
The Brian Lehrer Show, March 30, 2022
Does The United States Have a Free Speech Problem?
MSNBC, March 21, 2022
Is China censoring Hollywood?
Tortoise, March 15, 2022
Boycotting Russian Culture Doesn’t Help Ukraine
The Wall Street Journal, March 10, 2022
Banning Books
PBS NewsHour, March 10, 2022
When Diplomacy Fails
Foreign Policy, February 28, 2022
Op-Ed: The recent onslaught of book bans is a strategic part of wider attacks on our democracy
Los Angeles Times, February 20, 2022
NYC Landmarks50+ Alliance Winter Convening
New York Historical Society, February 17, 2022
Affirmative Action; Police Surveillance; Book Bans and ‘Divisive Concepts’; EV Experience
The Brian Lehrer Show, February 9, 2022
LPTV: We’re Speaking
The Lincoln Project, February 9, 2022
What’s next? US – Canada relationship to confront digital authoritarianism
MIGS Institute, February 8, 2022
‘Maus’ Among Latest Titles Banned in Some American School Districts
KQED Forum, February 2, 2022
2021
The Year in Misinformation
ABC News, December 29, 2021
Peng Shuai’s new statements fit a pattern in China. The world mustn’t fall for it.
The Washington Post, December 22, 2021
How to Save People From Drowning in a Sea of Misinformation
Slate, December 15, 2021
PEN America Town Hall Meeting: Writers on Self-Censorship
PEN America, December 8, 2021
Whine Line, Suzanne Nossel
The Charlie Brennan Show, November 1, 2021
Chinese Censorship Is Going Global
Foreign Policy, October 26, 2021
Facebook Oversight Board member calls for more transparency
CNN, October 24, 2021
You Can’t Say Anything Anymore
The Progress Network, October 20, 2021
Equity, Inclusion, and Uncompromised Free Speech
Wondros Podcast, October 13, 2021
A Nobel for Journalists Is a Direct Challenge to Authoritarians
Foreign Policy, October 13, 2021
Dismantling Antisemitism: Dare to Speak with author Suzanne Nossel
Jewish Community Center of Greater Dayton, September 19, 2021
Democracy, open societies and human rights: America’s global role since 9/11
Chatham House, September 15, 2021
Biden Needs to Bolster the Power of Exiles
Foreign Policy, September 13, 2021
To Safeguard Free Speech, We Must Protect Everyone’s Right To Be Heard — Even Those With Views Offensive To Others
Texas Public Radio, August 8, 2021
Dare to Speak Freely
The Weeds, August 6, 2021
Thirteen Ways of Looking at Censorship
The New York Times, July 16, 2021
Dare to Speak: Defending Free Speech for All
Action Line, July 7, 2021
Freedom of Speech in France and America
National Constitution Center, June 1, 2021
Authoritarianism Doesn’t Stop at the Water’s Edge
Foreign Policy, May 27, 2021
Killing Hong Kong’s Free Press Will Harm Its Economy
Foreign Policy, May 3, 2021
Romanticizing Dissidents Plays Into the Hands of Repressive Governments
Foreign Policy, April 1, 2021
Disinformation vs. Democracy: Soros and the Fight for Open Societies
PEN America and the Brennan Center for Justice, March 22, 2021
Assessing the Human Rights Situation in Saudi Arabia
U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on the Middle East, North Africa, and Global Counterterrorism, March 18, 2021
Dissent and Disagreement
Johns Hopkins University SNF Agora Institute, March 17, 2021
Expert Panel: U.S. Foreign Policy, Geopolitics, and Human Rights
Columbia University Arnold A. Saltzman Institute of War and Peace Studies, March 12, 2021
Dare to Speak: Free Speech Issues in Our Troubled Times
NYU Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute, March 8, 2021
Speech, the Internet, and Democracy, featuring Suzanne Nossel, CEO of PEN America
Bowdoin College, March 1, 2021
Suzanne Nossel – Directrice générale de PEN America
Cultural Services, French Embassy in the United States, February 28, 2021
Democracy in America: A New Era of Social Media Regulation?
Chatham House, February 25, 2021
Evening with an Author: Suzanne Nossel in conversation with Michelle Kuo
American Library in Paris, February 2, 2021
Banning Trump from Facebook may feel good. Here’s why it might be wrong
Los Angeles Times, January 27, 2021
Reckoning and Reconciliation in Biden’s America
PEN America, January 26, 2021
Don’t Let Trump’s Second Trial Change the First Amendment
The New York Times, January 14, 2021
2020
CQ Future: Free speech
Roll Call, December 11, 2020
Suzanne Nossel, Dare to Speak
Moms Don’t Have Time to Read Books with Zibby Owens, December 10, 2020
Recovering from the ‘fake news’ era, at home and abroad
CNN, November 29, 2020
CERL Virtual Book Talk – Dare to Speak
University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, November 19, 2020
Biden Must Restore America’s Reputation as a Beacon of Press Freedom
Foreign Policy, November 12, 2020
Amram Scholar Series Presents: Suzanne Nossel
Washington Hebrew Congregation, November 12, 2020
Suzanne Nossel with Mark Sableman and Pacia Elaine Anderson
Left Bank Books Presents, November 11, 2020
Dare to Speak. Discourse amid difference
KUOW/NPR, November 6, 2020
The Quarantine Tapes: Suzanne Nossel
The Quarantine Tapes Podcast, November 3, 2020
Defending Free Speech for All
Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, October 29, 2020
2020 Annual Meeting
The City Club of Cleveland, October 23, 2020
Gamechanger Ideas Festival: The First Amendment, Cancel Culture, and the Election
Humanities North Dakota, October 15, 2020
Saving Our Democracy Town Hall
The AFT and the Albert Shanker Institute, October 13, 2020
Promoting Free Speech in a More Inclusive Public Culture
The Business of Giving, October 7, 2020
Free to State: The New Free Speech
Washington Post Live, October 7, 2020
Voting Matters: Disinformation
Washington Post Live, October 6, 2020
How to Stop the Export of Authoritarianism
Foreign Policy, October 5, 2020
Beyond Representational Politics in Publishing
Brooklyn Book Festival, October 4, 2020
Dare to Speak Book Talk
National Center for Civil and Human Rights, September 30, 2020
PEN America’s Suzanne Nossel: Defending Free Speech
Commonwealth Club, September 21, 2020
Press Freedom During Turbulent Times
National Constitution Center, September 2, 2020
What Is the State of Free Speech Today? ‘It’s Under Profound Threat,’ Says the Head of PEN America
TIME, September 2, 2020
Suzanne Nossel with Dinaw Mengestu: Defending Free Speech for All
Town Hall Seattle, September 1, 2020
Free Speech, “Call-Out Culture,” and Social Justice
Princeton Policy Podcasts, August 23, 2020
Why we should all agree to disagree
Good Morning America, August 20, 2020
Dare to Speak: Defending Free Speech for All
The German Marshall Fund of the United States, August 20, 2020
Suzanne Nossel presents Dare to Speak in conversation with Jacob Weisberg
Powell’s Books, August 17, 2020
Magic City Books Virtual Event
Magic City Books, August 10, 2020
New book examines free speech in America
CBS, August 7, 2020
Defending Your Right to Speak
Unprecedented with Richard Hine, August 6, 2020
Dare to Speak: Suzanne Nossel with Ayad Akhtar
Live from NYPL, August 6, 2020
Protecting Free Speech Amid Global Reckoning on Race
The Foreign Correspondent Club Hong Kong, August 4, 2020
‘Cancel culture’ censorship can be most dangerous for those who promote social justice
NBC News THINK, August 4, 2020
Suzanne Nossel Wants You to ‘Dare to Speak’
Shondaland, August 3, 2020
Suzanne Nossel
WCIN’s The Public Eye, August 2, 2020
For Speech We Abhor: Talking to Suzanne Nossel
Los Angeles Review of Books, July 31, 2020
Special Edition, Suzanne Nossel
Clear and Present Danger: A History of Free Speech, July 31, 2020
Zoom Speaker Series: Suzanne Nossel
Charleston Library Society, July 30, 2020
Suzanne Nossel: What’s the Case Against Free Speech?
Keen On, July 30, 2020
Suzanne Nossel, Andrew Marantz, and Sewell Chan in Conversation
Open Book on Location, Altadena Library, July 30, 2020
Freedom of Speech
Deep Background with Noah Feldman, July 29, 2020
Suzanne Nossel, in conversation with Jennifer Egan
Live Talks Los Angeles, July 29, 2020
Dare to Speak with Wajahat Ali
Politics and Prose Live!, July 28, 2020
The American Approach to Free Speech is Flawed — but It’s the Best Option We Have
Slate, July 28, 2020
Hate and the Vilification of the Media
Bard Center for the Study of Hate, July 23, 2020
‘Dare to Speak’ with PEN America’s Suzanne Nossel
So to Speak: The Free Speech Podcast, July 21, 2020
Has Free Speech Become an Even More Partisan Issue Under the Trump Administration?
LitHub, July 15, 2020
Free Expression on College Campuses with Dr. Wayne Frederick and Suzanne Nossel
Knight Foundation, July 2, 2020
Five myths about free speech
The Washington Post, July 2, 2020
Those who exercise free speech should also defend it — even when it’s offensive
Los Angeles Times, June 19, 2020
We need smart solutions to mitigate the coronavirus’s impact. Here are 37.
The Washington Post, May 26, 2020
Don’t Let Leaders Use the Coronavirus as an Excuse to Violate Civil Liberties
Foreign Policy, April 13, 2020
As We Confront a Pandemic, U.S. State and Federal Government Must Support Local News
Slate, March 27, 2020
China Is Fighting the Coronavirus Propaganda War to Win
Foreign Policy, March 20, 2020
Redefining Free Speech for the Digital Age
American University, February 23, 2020
2019
Fool Us Once, Shame on You. Fool Us in 2020, Shame on Us.
The New York Times, December 17, 2019
The Loss of Local News with Suzanne Nossel
Bob Herbert’s Op-Ed TV, December 3, 2019
Kamala Harris wants to boot Trump from Twitter. It wouldn’t work.
The Washington Post, October 4, 2019
Joaquin Castro’s Tweet Was Not Doxxing
The New York Times, August 9, 2019
A Very American Diplomat: A New Biography of Richard Holbrooke
Asia Society, May 7, 2019
The Alarming Assault on the Free Press
CNN, May 2, 2019
Panel on Global Hate Speech
University Indiana Bloomington, March 21, 2019
Why Trump’s Campus Free Speech Order is a Big Risk
CNN, March 18, 2019
Bernie Sanders Still Doesn’t Pass the Commander-in-Chief Test
Foreign Policy, March 1, 2019
Trump and May Are Discrediting Democracy
Foreign Policy, January 24, 2019
2018
Who Benefits From Free Speech?
The Atlantic Free Speech (Un)Limited Event, December 5, 2018
Enforced Silence Is Just As Dangerous As Any Offensive Rhetoric
The Washington Post, November 16, 2018
Trump’s Divisive Speech Puts the First Amendment at Risk
Foreign Policy, October 31, 2018
Difficult Dialogues in Higher Education: Race, Racial Justice, Civil Discourse, and Free Speech
University of Maryland, October 17, 2018
Trump’s Attacks on the Press Are Illegal. We’re Suing.
Politico, October 16, 2018
Journalists are Routinely Murdered Around the World. They Deserve Outrage Just Like Jamal Khashoggi
Los Angeles Times, October 16, 2018
The Future of Information and the Impact on Democracy
22nd Forum 2000 Conference, October 8, 2018
Google Is Handing the Future of the Internet to China
Foreign Policy, September 10, 2018
The Job of Human Rights Chief Isn’t What You Think
Foreign Policy, August 9, 2018
What the Trump Administration Gets Very Wrong About Free Speech
CNN, August 7, 2018
The Future of Free Speech
Chatauqua Institution, July 24, 2018
Once Upon a Time, Helsinki Meant Human Rights
Foreign Policy, July 11, 2018
Trigger Warning: Safe Spaces are Dangerous
Intelligence Squared, June 23, 2018
Free to State: The First Amendment and the Law
Washington Post Live, June 19, 2018
Sometimes More Speech Isn’t the Solution to Offensive Speech
The Washington Post, May 29, 2018
You Can Only Protect Campus Speech if You Acknowledge Racism
The Washington Post, May 25, 2018
Rex Tillerson Proved CEOs Are DOA in Washington
Foreign Policy, March 13, 2018
We Cannot Continue to Treat All Offensive Speech Acts – Intentional or Not – As Equally Blameworthy
Pioneer Press, March 11, 2018
Campus Free Speech
TEDxScarsdale, March 10, 2018
Serving Under Trump Is Not a Crime
Foreign Policy, February 7, 2018
Trump’s Every Tweet Shouldn’t Dominate the News Cycle, but His Blather Demands Confrontation
Los Angeles Times, January 16, 2018
2017
Not all Campus Speakers are Created Equal (Especially When They’re From the German Far Right)
The Washington Post, October 31, 2017
NFL Owners Need to Play Defense to Protect Free Speech
The Washington Post, October 15, 2017
The Pro-Free Speech Way to Fight Fake News
Foreign Policy, October 12, 2017
The Jemele Hill Controversy Portends a World Stripped of Our Culture of Free Expression
Los Angeles Times, September 15, 2017
The Problem with Making Hate Speech Illegal
Foreign Policy, August 14, 2017
How We Communicate is Changing. So Should the Way We Think About Free Speech.
The Washington Post, August 11, 2017
The Gross Misconduct of Radwan Ziadeh’s Asylum Denial
Foreign Policy, July 25, 2017
No, Hateful Speech is Not the Same Thing as Violence.
The Washington Post, June 22, 2017
It’s OK that Trump Doesn’t Care About Human Rights
Foreign Policy, June 19, 2017
Can Freedom of the Press Survive Trump’s Onslaught?
Foreign Policy, May 3, 2017
Beware the Ides of Leaving the Human Rights Council
Foreign Policy, March 14, 2017
‘America First’ Puts Freedom and Leadership Last
CNN, March 5, 2017
What’s at Stake When Trump Discredits the Press
Just Security, March 1, 2017
Milo Yiannopoulos, Hate Speech, and Campus Protest: A Primer
The Washington Post, February 6, 2017
Donald Trump Acts Like an Authoritarian Thug Toward the Press
The Guardian, January 12, 2017
2016
Pushing Back Against the Tyrants
Democracy Journal, Summer 2016
To Fight ‘Hate Speech,’ Stop Talking About It
The Washington Post, June 3, 2016
What U.S. Publishers Owe China
The Washington Post, May 26, 2016
Europe’s Free-Speech Apocalypse Is Already Here
Foreign Policy, March 17, 2016
2015
Who is Entitled to Be Heard?
The New York Times, November 12, 2015
Who Will Speak for China’s Dissidents
Los Angeles Times, September 20, 2015
The Fight Over Jemele Hill’s Tweets Won’t Go Away, It’s About Truth and Race in The Trump Era
The Washington Post, September 19, 2015
Closing a Vital Window Into China
Foreign Policy, February 4, 2015