Tech Policy Podcast

Jacob Mchangama and Jeff Kosseff discuss their fantastic new book, The Future of Free Speech. Links: The Future of Free Speech: Reversing the Global Decline of Democracy's Most Essential Freedom

TechFreedom’s Corbin Barthold, Santana Boulton, and Andy Jung discuss whether AI promotes free speech, why AI outputs are protected free expression, why Anthropic should win its First Amendment lawsuit against the Department of War, and much else besides. Links: AI + 1A: Why the First Amendment Protects Artificial Intelligence Don’t Ban Kids From Using Chatbots Heaven’s Gate—How and When It May Be Entered

Our host, Corbin Barthold (TechFreedom), speaks on a panel at State of the Net with Joel Thayer (Digital Progress Institute) and Ashkhen Kazaryan (The Future of Free Speech), and Luke Hogg (Foundation for American Innovation). They discuss how the First Amendment should work in a world of algorithms and AI. Links: AI + 1A: Why the First Amendment Protects Artificial Intelligence (Corbin’s new paper) (https://tinyurl.com/mw5vbuzf) State of the Net 2026 Tech Podcast Policy 373: Porn and the First Amendment Tech Podcast Policy 417: Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton Is Wreaking Havoc

Host Corbin Barthold (TechFreedom) deconstructs Justice Barrett’s surprisingly influential concurrence in Moody v. NetChoice. Or: Why the First Amendment protects algorithms and AI.  Links: Moody v. NetChoice The Post-human First Amendment Tech Policy Podcast 286: How Algorithms Can Fight Extremism Tech Policy Podcast 414: Beware the Butlerian Jihad

A landmark bellwether trial in Los Angeles is testing whether Instagram and YouTube can be blamed for teen addiction and mental health problems. Clay Calvert (American Enterprise Institute) and Corbin Barthold (TechFreedom) review the many problems with letting plaintiffs’ lawyers demagogue social media platforms in front of a jury. Links: Social Media Addiction Lawsuits: The Deceptively Flawed Tobacco Analogy Tech Policy Podcast 347: When Schools Scapegoat Social Media

Brent Orrell (American Enterprise Institute) discusses the future of work in a world of genius machines.Links:De-Skilling the Knowledge Economy What Anthropic’s Internal Study Suggests About the Future of WorkDid the Canaries Just Die?AI and the Future of Work Looks Bright

Thom Lambert (Mizzou Law) discusses the Trump II administration’s new right antitrust regulators. Stay calm everyone, they just want the discretion to reward friends and punish enemies.Links:‘New Right’ AntitrustNew Right vs. Conservative AntitrustThe Limits of Antitrust

Scott Babwah Brennan is the director of NYU’s Center on Technology Policy. Scott and his team have just released their 2025 State Technology Policy Report—a thorough and thoughtful survey and analysis of the tech legislation coming out of statehouses across the country. Scott joins the show to discuss the report and break down how states are shaping the regulatory landscape on AI, child online safety, data privacy, and more.Links:The Center on Technology Policy: State Technology Policy Report 2025

Host Corbin Barthold offers some end-of-year reflections on the moral panic over kids’ use of social media and AI. Then we revisit Episode 405 (“No, Internet Age Verification Has Not Been ‘Solved’,” Apr. 30, 2025), in which Prof. Eric Goldman discusses his paper “The ‘Segregate-and-Suppress’ Approach to Regulating Child Safety Online.”Links:This Country Banned Social Media for Young Teens. Here’s how They’re Defying It.Australia’s Social Media Ban Goes Into Effect as Pretty Much Everyone Realizes It’s a Total MessThe “Segregate-and-Suppress” Approach to Regulating Child Safety OnlineTech Policy Podcast 417: Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton Is Wreaking Havoc

Pamela Samuelson (UC Berkeley) discusses the Supreme Court oral argument in Cox v. Sony, a copyright case that could have major ramifications for the internet.Links:Cox Communications, Inc. v. Sony Music Entertainment

Corbin heads over to the Techdirt Podcast, hosted by the one and only Mike Masnick, for a wide-ranging discussion about the state of social media.

Geoff Manne (ICLE) returns! He and Corbin break down a judge’s ruling (politely) laughing the FTC’s antitrust lawsuit against Meta out of court.Topics include:The bizarro world of antitrust trash tweeting“‘Antitrust’ means what I want it to mean!”Back in reality: a straightforward rulingMaybe Zuck just . . . knows what he’s doing?Users want what they want ¯\_(ツ)_/¯Does your market definition pass the laugh test?Links:Tech Policy Podcast 384: The Facebook Antitrust Case Tech Policy Podcast 393: Herbert Hovenkamp on the State of Antitrust Law

Ari Cohn (FIRE) and host Corbin Barthold (TechFreedom) survey the Trump administration’s many attacks on the First Amendment.Topics include:Law firms you should no longer hirePolitical opponents = terror groups?!Brendan Carr is a lap dogJawboning rebrand: it’s “outreach”!Terrorizing foreign students is badLinks:What if the Big Law Firms Hadn’t Caved to Trump?The Global Free Speech RecessionTech Policy Podcast 394: Tech and Trump 2.0

She’s back! Former host Ash Kazaryan (Future of Free Speech) returns for a wide-ranging discussion about powerful algorithms, attacks on Section 230, and much, much more.Topics include:Ash: this is your life!In defense of tHe aLGoRitHmIn defense of Section 230Once more: Anderson v. TikTok is so badHas information gotten too cheap?Why Evangelicals should love AIWhy every platform has a metamorphosisLet’s get cancelledLinks:I Built This Algo Brick by BrickThe Bedrock PrincipleNeural VizTech Policy Podcast 417: Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton Is Wreaking HavocTPP From the Vault: Revising Section 230 Will Silence Marginalized VoicesTPP From the Vault: Why Section 230 Matters

Sri Muppidi (The Information) discusses OpenAI’s effort to overhaul its corporate structure—and the resulting power struggle over the company’s future.Links:OpenAI Says Its Business Will Burn $115 Billion Through 2029 OpenAI Executives Rattled by Campaigns to Derail For-Profit Restructuring OpenAI Says Nonprofit Parent Will Own Equity Stake in Company of Over $100 Billion 

Jeremy Neufeld (Institute for Progress) discusses how our immigration system works, why high-skilled immigrants are so important to the tech sector, what’s wrong with the Trump administration’s H-1B reforms, why America is so complacent about competing for global talent, and more.Links: Trump’s H-1B Changes Won’t WorkTalent Recruitment Roulette: Replacing the H-1B Lottery | IFPThe Talent Scout State | IFPTech Policy Podcast 317: Making Progress

Adam Kovacevich (Chamber of Progress) discusses the populist / anti-tech turn in politics, and what can be done about it.Topics include:How did we get here?Tech optimists: There are dozens of us!Beware ThE gROupSIf there’s a crisis, maybe act like it?Duct tape and bubble gumThe great relearningWe’re so doomedWe’re so not doomedLinks:Tech Policy Podcast 403: The Constitutional CrisisTech Policy Podcast 388: The Abundance AgendaTech Policy Podcast 355: Conservative FuturismTech Policy Podcast 301: The Realignment

Ari Cohn (FIRE) and Tom Kurland (Patterson Belknap) discuss the spate of product-liability lawsuits against social-media and AI companies.Topics include:A tort law primerThe ballad of Helen PalsgrafCausation, shmausationSpeech =/= productIdeas are powerful. (That’s the point!)“Addiction.” You keep using that word …♪ Junk science ♪AI, suicide, and youLinks:Tech Policy Podcast 414: Beware the Butlerian JihadTech Policy Podcast 347: When Schools Scapegoat Social MediaTech Policy Podcast 310: Algorithmic Amplification

Host Corbin Barthold (TechFreedom) discusses why Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton is wrong, how it muddies First Amendment law, and how it is already causing wider harm.Topics include:FSC v. Paxton: a result-oriented rulingA credulous courtPoRn iS sCArYAshcroft v. ACLU is sitting right there!tEcH Is ScARyRIP First Amendment 101The porn-to-social media litigation pipeline States cite FSC v. Paxton 1,000 timesLinks:Tech Policy Podcast 373: Porn and the First Amendment

Shoshana Weissmann (R Street) discusses the disastrous Online Safety Act, the growth of censorship in the UK, and more.Topics include:Protect the children, they said . . .The SpongeBob videos must stopSolve problems? Or just shut people up?How dare you comply with our law!Age verification in practicePeter Kyle: polite demagogueLet’s kill KOSAUK: global speech police?“Rights”: you keep using that word . . .Links:U.K.’s Online Safety Act Censors the Internet—A Preview of U.S. ProposalsTech Policy Podcast 405: No, Internet Age Verification Has Not Been “Solved”Tech Policy Podcast 404: The Worst Possible Moment to Break EncryptionTech Policy Podcast 356: The UK Targets End-to-End EncryptionTech Policy Podcast 354: Online Age Verification (Sucks)