NEW REPORT FROM FIRE: RESTRICTIVE CAMPUS SPEECH POLICIES SEE RECORD DECLINE – Today the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) released its annual “Spotlight on Speech Codes,” a report on the speech policies at 449 of America’s largest and most prestigious colleges and universities. This year’s report indicates a record decline in the percentage of universities maintaining policies that severely restrict students’ free speech rights.

Unfortunately, however, it isn’t all good news. For example, about 40 percent of the schools FIRE surveyed had a “bias reporting team” tasked with investigating incidents of verbal bias. As the Wall Street Journal reported:

Even as some colleges drop speech codes to avoid legal challenges, many have established “bias” reporting systems that solicit complaints about offensive speech. As Fire explains, these systems encourage “students to report on one another—and on faculty members—whenever they subjectively perceive that someone’s speech or expression is biased.”

Check out more about the report over on FIRE’s website, or read the Wall Street Journal’s write-up about the findings!