New York University: Professor Investigated Due to Course Content and Personal Blog Post

In September 2020, Professor Mark Crispin Miller taught a session of his media course on propaganda that focused on the campaigns surrounding the efficacy of mask-wearing to combat the spread of the novel coronavirus. After a student criticized the course session and Miller online, Miller posted an entry on his personal blog defending himself and his academic freedom, leading several faculty members to call on the university to investigate Miller’s teaching and extramural comments. On November 13, FIRE wrote to NYU explaining why Miller’s pedagogical choices and extramural expression are protected by academic freedom and called on the university to end its investigation immediately.