Last week, on October 31, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court heard argument in two important cases concerning the First Amendment and government agencies.  Both cases present the question of when and how First Amendment free speech standards apply to government officials in curating public comments on their social media pages.  

The cases are O’Connor-Ratcliff

Social media sites have become the new “public square” where individuals share opinions and information about all types of political and societal events.  Public sector employees, as much as anyone else, use social media to post viewpoints and to participate in public debate.  Problems arise, however, when a public employee posts harsh, derogatory, defamatory, or

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This post was co-authored by Elizabeth Arce

The popularity of social media websites such as Facebook and Twitter have created new and unprecedented challenges for employers.  The New York Times reported recently that even commanders in our Armed Forces have expressed concern about troops playing with iPhones and BlackBerrys when they should be working.  Because