This week, writers and free speech advocates Jacob Mchangama and Sara Paretsky discuss the importance of free speech today.
Jacob Mchangama is the author of Free Speech: A History from Socrates to Social Media, which traces the riveting legal, political, and cultural history of this idea. He is also the co-author, along with Jeff Kosseff, of the new book The Future of Free Speech: Reversing the Global Decline of Democracy’s Most Essential Freedom. He is joined by mystery writer and free speech advocate Sara Paretsky to discuss this important topic. Paretsky’s latest novel, Bad Company, comes out November 2026.
This program was part of the 2026 American Writers Festival. Co-hosted by the American Writers Museum and Chicago Public Library, the American Writers Festival is a free literary event featuring in-depth conversations with diverse writers from across genres and backgrounds. This conversation took place June 6, 2026 and was recorded live at the American Writers Museum.
More about The Future of Free Speech:
The Future of Free Speech argues for a reinvigorated, global commitment to open dialogue. Mchangama and Kosseff advocate nonpartisan, civic-minded solutions that resist both government overreach and corporate silencing. They offer a compelling case for how free speech can meet modern challenges without abandoning its foundational role in sustaining democracy, human rights, and shared understanding.
More about Bad Company:
Meet Lily. Once the CIA’s most effective field agent, she’s now the target of a Company womanhunt designed to silence her. She’s in her 70s. Can she call on her old field skills to save her life?
JACOB MCHANGAMA is the Founder and Executive Director of The Future of Free Speech and research professor at Vanderbilt University. Author of Free Speech: A History From Socrates to Social Media, (Basic Books 2022) and The Future of Free Speech: Reversing the Global Decline of Democracy’s Most Essential Freedom (Johns Hopkins University Press 2026). He is the recipient of numerous awards for his work on free speech and human rights.
SARA PARETSKY revolutionized the mystery world in 1982 when she introduced V.I. Warshawski in Indemnity Only. By creating a detective with the grit and smarts to take on the mean streets, Paretsky challenged a genre in which women historically were vamps or victims. V.I. struck a chord with readers and critics; Indemnity Only was followed by twenty more V.I. novels. Paretsky detailed her journey from Kansas farm-girl to New York Times bestseller in her 2007 memoir, Writing in an Age of Silence, which was a National Book Critics Circle Award finalist. In addition, Paretsky has written two stand-alone novels, Ghost Country, and Bleeding Kansas, set in the part of rural Kansas where Paretsky grew up. She has published several short story collections, most recently Love & Other Crimes, and has edited numerous other anthologies.