Suzanne Nossel

Suzanne Nossel currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer of PEN America, the leading human rights and free expression organization, and she is author of Dare to Speak: Defending Free Speech for All. Since joining in 2013, she has 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.

Order Today

Cited in “Symbiotic Security and Free Speech” by Michael J. Glennon.

Recent Publications & APPEARANCES

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