The New Yorker Radio Hour Jenin Younes on Threats to Free Speech from the Left and the Right
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Feb 10, 2026 
Jenin Younes, a lawyer and national legal director at the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, has a background in First Amendment and civil-rights litigation. She discusses government and platform COVID-era moderation, internal evidence of pressure on social media, free-speech risks from both political sides, and the legal and cultural challenges of protecting unpopular speech.
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Representation Of Censored COVID Scientists
- Jenin Younes described representing Dr. Jay Bhattacharya and others who had COVID-related posts removed from platforms.
- She said some removals included reasonable scientific disputes as well as clearly false claims, but both are legally protected speech.
Government Speech Versus Coercion
- The government may speak its views but cannot lawfully demand platforms censor others' viewpoints.
- Crossing from government speech to coercing private censorship creates First Amendment concerns.
Internal Emails Showing Pressure
- Younes recounted discovery emails showing platform executives saying they censored under White House pressure.
- She cited Nick Clegg asking why Facebook censored the lab-leak theory and being told they did so under Biden White House pressure.