Free Speech: A History from Socrates to Social Media

“The best history of free speech ever written and the best defense of free speech ever made.”-P. J. O'Rourke

Hailed as the “first freedom,” free speech is the bedrock of democracy. But it is a challenging principle, subject to erosion in times of upheaval. Today, in democracies and authoritarian states around the world, we are experiencing a free speech recession.

In Free Speech, Jacob Mchangama traces the riveting legal, political, and cultural history of this idea. Through captivating st...