Want to receive this digest in your inbox? To subscribe, simply click here and choose DARE: Daily Alert on Rights and Expression from the list.

Time magazine honors Jamal Khashoggi, Wa Lone, Kyaw Soe Oo, the Capital Gazette staff killed in a mass shooting in June, and other journalists killed and imprisoned for their work as their ‘Person of the Year.’ As part of the magazine’s ‘Person of the Year’ issue, PEN America president Jennifer Egan writes on the role of literature as ‘an antidote to the blunt distortions—good vs. evil, us vs. them—that are so easily exploited by those who would manipulate us.’ Columbia student sparks controversy on campus with expletive-ridden, racially charged rant in defense of white people, in an incident set to test the university’s commitment to inclusion. Arkansas state representative files bill to allow social media users to sue platforms for removing content. -Anoosh Gasparian, External Relations Manager

The most pressing threats and notable goings-on in free expression today

U.S.

Time Magazine Names Jamal Khashoggi and Persecuted Journalists ‘Person of the Year’
Time magazine has collectively named Jamal Khashoggi and other killed and imprisoned journalists as its “person of the year” for 2018. The magazine gave the title–which goes to the person they judge has been the most influential over the past year–to “the Guardians and the War on Truth.”
THE GUARDIAN

We Need Writers Now More Than Ever. Our Democracy Depends On It *PEN President
“Writers tend to fare badly under autocrats. Dictators understand very well that the strength of thought and analysis that literature embodies is a threat to the mind control that is an essential feature of tyranny. … We need to write now, write well—tell the truth in all its messy complexity.”
TIME

‘We’re White Men. We Did Everything’: Columbia Condemns Student’s Tirade Targeting Minorities *Read PEN America’s principles on campus speech
A video shared to Twitter captured the chaotic scene that unfolded outside an on-campus library. The now-viral video has sparked widespread outrage, reigniting concerns about the treatment of minorities at prominent colleges and universities.
WASHINGTON POST

Arkansas Bill Allows Social Media Sites To Be Sued For Removing Certain Posts
An Arkansas state representative has filed a bill allowing social media websites to be sued for removing certain religious and political posts, whether or not the platforms deem the posts to be hate speech. Under the bill, social media sites are considered a public utility subject to “special government regulation.”
KATV

 
Global

In Britain, a Team Effort to Help Local News Survive
The Local News Partnership, which began this year, is one example of how the business model for local news reporting is stretching in ways that would have seemed unimaginable not long ago, including financing from nonprofit groups and revenue from government resources.
NEW YORK TIMES

Palestinian Journalists, Officials Protest Israeli Army Raid of WAFA News Agency Office
Dozens of journalists and officials gathered outside the WAFA building in Ramallah holding posters denouncing the army attack against WAFA, the official news agency, that included throwing tear gas and stun grenades in the newsroom and stairway causing suffocation cases.
WAFA

Stansted 15 Convictions a ‘Crushing Blow for Human Rights in U.K.’
Two of the activists convicted of terrorism offences for blocking the takeoff of an immigration removal charter flight at Stansted airport have spoken of their shock at the verdicts, saying this is an “unprecedented crackdown on the right to protest.”
THE GUARDIAN

Google’s Dragonfly Will Intensify Surveillance on Journalists in China
Assuming Chinese journalists use Dragonfly for research the same way journalists outside the country use Google, these laws mean the Chinese state will be able to learn how journalists discover a story, contact sources, and report the story out. The state can prosecute anyone with involvement in the process at their discretion.
COLUMBIA JOURNALISM REVIEW

DARE is a project of PEN America’s #LouderTogether campaign, bringing you a daily-curated roundup of the most important free expression-related news from the U.S. and abroad. Send your feedback and story suggestions to [email protected]