3 Whisky Happy Hour: Election Hangover & Free Speech: It’s Only One Whisky This Week
Welp, it's only a One Whisky Happy Hour this week, as Steve had to go solo. (John is overseas, and Lucretia is indisposed this weekend.) Actually, you could say this is a One-and-a-Half Whisky Happy Hour—Steve has an extended "cameo" with special guest Carson Holloway of the University of Nebraska, author of a terrific new book, No Liberty to Libel: The Constitutional Case Against NY Times v. Sullivan. Steve opens with a few observations about the election rout, which don't sum up to "things will get worse before they get worse." While no one should sugarcoat the magnitude of this election defeat, he points out that we've actually seen worse before, and rebounded nonetheless—sometimes sooner than people recall. So be of good cheer, and enjoy at least one-and-a-half shots on us. Then Steve and Carson walk up through the Sullivan case that shields the media from libel actions by public figures, with a made-up extra-constitutional doctrine, and explain why it is ripe for overturning. Along the way, you'll get a quick primer on how the Founders understood libel and the First Amendment, and some of the background in the common law. It's a splendidly written and highly accessible book for the non-specialist. Since it's only Steve and Carson, this episode is shorter than usual, but presented ad-free.
