Following Elon Musk's acquisition of Twitter, Stanford professors have raised concerns over the future of free speech on the platform. Musk’s bid “is not good news for anyone interested in the nexus between free speech and responsible speech,” said communications professor Theodore Glasser.

At their Thursday meeting, members of the Faculty Senate criticized the harm reporting process as being restrictive of free speech and academic freedom on campus.

Sara Bukair argues that doxxing and harassment chill free speech on campus, as yesterday's Mike Pence event illustrated. "It was hard for me to see the 'freedom of speech' outside Dinkelspiel when unhealthy political practices clearly created too hostile of an environment for a large population of students to engage with Pence’s visit to campus," Bukair writes.

The Band has suspended the current Stanford Tree until January for carrying a “Stanford Hates Fun” banner at a football game, reigniting student concerns over social life and free speech on campus.

Ralph King '80 argues that Stanford is zoning out protests in the name of security at high-profile events. "Stanford's approach smacks of a police state, not healthy debate," he writes.

In a letter co-signed by President Marc Tessier-Lavigne and SLS Dean Jenny Martinez, the University apologized to Duncan for the “disruption” to his Thursday speech at the Law School, calling the incident “inconsistent with [the University’s] policies on free speech.”

Daily editors sat down with President Marc Tessier-Lavigne to discuss free speech on campus, the University’s greatest challenges when it comes to the issue and more.

Members of SLS organizations protested against Duncan at his Thursday talk at the Law School, claiming that “he has repeatedly and proudly threatened healthcare and basic rights for marginalized communities.” The protest drew the criticism of at least one free speech civil rights group and according to SLS Dean Jenny Martinez, “was not aligned with [SLS’s] institutional commitment to freedom of speech.”

Professor David Palumbo-Liu discusses his skepticism surrounding the Faculty Senate’s motion to establish an Academic Freedom Committee. He writes, “I doubt I will go to any of the meetings which will discuss academic freedom at Stanford.”

Professor David Palumbo-Liu argues that inclusive language is necessary to create a truly diverse educational experience. "We need to patiently get back to defining our core values... and granting each other the right to make a mistake, for that is something essential to education," he writes.

"By refusing to update its Fundamental Standard to restrict hate speech, Stanford is willingly removing its most effective weapon against discrimination from its arsenal and allowing its campus to remain an unsafe space," writes Will Halverson.

The tabled recommendations would have established an anti-doxxing policy and prohibit "malicious attacks" on individuals.

SCR’s speaker events have a history of stirring controversy on campus, and the Pence speaker event is no exception. SCR was initially unable to secure University funding after the Undergraduate Senate (UGS) denied SCR’s request twice last fall.

Although the company has denied “deliberately making someone’s content undiscoverable to everyone except the person who posted it,” it was revealed last month that Twitter did have a system in place to restrict visibility of certain users. 

Malicious, purposefully hurtful use of social media, by anyone or any organization, should be condemned, and fall under some disciplinary process.

Many of us at The Daily were not only dismayed but frustrated to learn of our former colleague and classmate Emily Wilder ’20’s firing from the AP following tweets by the Stanford College Republicans. We were frustrated because, through our time at Stanford and at The Daily, and especially in our reporting on and engagement with the College Republicans, we could see the pattern in the group’s cynical tactics and had thought we could trust an organization like the AP not to fall for them.

The controversy stems from a satirical flyer Nicholas Wallace J.D. ’21 sent to a law school mailing list on Jan. 25, advertising a fictitious event that lampooned the Stanford Federalist Society. Despite lifting the hold, Stanford continues to face intensifying questions over the bounds of free speech on campus and its enforcement of policies.

ResEd removed all posters in EVGR-A, including those posted by advocacy group Sexual Violence Free Stanford, citing a poster policy in the residence agreement.

In Wednesday’s subpoena issued to Stanford, Musk’s legal team requested documents related to all “conversations, conferences, discussions, interviews, meetings, negotiations and agreements.” The trial is set to take place on Oct. 17 as Musk seeks to terminate his agreement to acquire Twitter for $44 billion.

The executive team of The Stanford Daily welcomes you to Vol. 262. Join us as we emphasize digital content, improving our storytelling, developing our staff and fostering reader trust.