This September we will mark 25 years since 9/11. Many of us will be reflecting on the losses and the meaning of that day, and on how the legacies of that day still shape lives in New York, across the country, and around the world a quarter century later. 

On September 9th and 10th, the Knight Institute and Columbia’s Simon and June Li Center for Global Journalism will convene journalists, scholars, lawyers, and activists to explore one of those legacies in particular: The ongoing impact of the War on Terror on democratic rights, including the freedoms of speech and the press.

First Amendment freedoms came under stress from the moment President George W. Bush declared a “War on Terror” and his press secretary warned Americans to “watch what they say.” Pervasive secrecy and censorship hid war crimes, torture, and other grave human rights abuses. Surveillance programs proliferated, from the NYPD’s targeting of New York Muslim communities to digital surveillance operations of unprecedented scope and reach. Anti-terrorism legislation criminalized forms of peaceful speech and association. The press struggled to fulfill its role, and when journalists did report on controversial and covert programs, they did so in the shadow of the Espionage Act, which the government deployed against journalists’ sources and threatened to deploy against journalists themselves. 

But those same First Amendment freedoms nurtured new forms of resistance, solidarity, and even accountability as well. Civil society groups and community organizations mobilized to defend civil liberties and protect targeted minorities. A new generation of journalists responded to the failures of legacy media by building new media tools and institutions in response to the failures, limitations, and blind spots of legacy media.

What does all of this mean for us today? To what extent are we still living the Forever War, and in what ways are we now living in its shadow? How have the suppressions and distortions of the Forever War worked their way into our systems and psyches? Is our system of free expression stronger or weaker now? This symposium will explore these and other questions and assess the lasting significance of the Forever War for First Amendment freedoms and for our democratic institutions and culture. 

The symposium is co-sponsored by the Knight Institute and the Simon and June Li Center for Global Journalism at Columbia Journalism School in partnership with Harper’s Magazine and The Columbia Daily Spectator. 

Reception to follow on September 9.

Lunch will be provided on September 10.

Registration is required.

RSVP for in-person or virtual attendance.

Schedule

• Wednesday September 9

  The Lee C. Bollinger Forum and Online

  601 W 125th St, New York, NY 10027

  4:00PM – 4:15PM EDT
  Introductory Remarks

  • Jameel Jaffer, Knight Institute
  • Azmat Khan, Simon and June Li Center for Global Journalism at Columbia Journalism School
  4:15PM – 5:30PM EDT
  The Forever War’s Long Shadow 

  How did the U.S. government’s response to 9/11 become embedded in our lives, our institutions, and our national mythology and character? In what ways can the defining features of our current political moment—the rise of authoritarianism, the erosion of democratic freedoms, the weakening of civic institutions, the coarsening of political discourse, the inauguration of new wars based on flimsy and constantly shifting pretexts, and the normalization of official impunity—be traced to decisions made, frameworks established, or habits adopted in the months and years following the attacks? 

  Panelists

  • Rozina Ali, The New York Times Magazine
  • Assia Boundaoui, Inverse Surveillance Project
  • Brett Max Kaufman, American Civil Liberties Union
  • Aziz Rana, Boston College Law School

  Moderator

  • Lydia Polgreen, The New York Times
  5:30PM – 5:45PM EDT
  Break 5:45PM – 6:45PM EDT
  Democratic Oversight of National Security 6:45PM – 7:30PM EDT
  Performance 7:30PM – 9:00PM EDT
  Reception
• Thursday September 10

  The Lee C. Bollinger Forum and Online

  601 W 125th St, New York, NY 10027

  9:15AM – 9:45AM EDT
  Welcome 9:45AM – 11:00AM EDT
  The First Amendment Under Pressure

  Contemporary First Amendment doctrine is meant to serve as a bulwark against censorship, surveillance, and secrecy, even in times of war and national security crisis. How did the war on terror test the freedoms of speech and the press, and how effective were the First Amendment’s protections? How well is the First Amendment serving us now?

  Panelists

  • David Cole, Georgetown University Law Center
  • Astha Sharma Pokharel, Center for Constitutional Rights
  • Shirin Sinnar, Stanford Law School

  Moderator

  • Alex Abdo, Knight Institute
  11:00AM – 11:15AM EDT
  Break 11:15AM – 11:45AM EDT
  An Interview with Alberto Mora

  Columbia Daily Spectator reporter, Emily Pickering, interviews former U.S. Navy General Counsel Alberto Mora.

  11:45AM – 12:15PM EDT
  An Interview with Mohamedou Ould Slahi

  Columbia Daily Spectator reporter, Spencer Davis, interviews Mohamedou Ould Slahi, an author and former Guantánamo prisoner.  

  12:15PM – 1:30PM EDT
  Lunch

  Lunch will be provided.

  1:30PM – 2:45PM EDT
  New Media, New Media Institutions

  As traditional media struggled—and often failed—to inform the public and challenge official narratives during the Forever War, new media outlets, transparency projects, and open-source investigators repeatedly stepped forward to play this critical role. Many pioneered methods and  models that traditional media would later adopt as its own. How have these projects fared over the past quarter century, and what is their legacy today?

  Panelists

  • Sharif Abdel Kouddous, Drop Site News
  • Shourideh C. Molavi, Columbia University
  • Prem Thakker, Zeteo
  • Emily Tripp, Airwars

  Moderator

  • Azmat Khan, Simon and June Li Center for Global Journalism at Columbia Journalism School
  2:45PM – 3:00PM EDT
  Break 3:00PM – 3:30PM EDT
  An Interview with Mohsen Mahdawi

  Columbia Daily Spectator reporter, Daksha Pillai, interviews Mohsen Mahdawi, a Palestinian human rights advocate and Columbia University graduate student.

  3:30PM – 4:45PM EDT
  The Forever War and Democratic Culture

  How has the war on terror shaped public discourse and civic institutions in the United States? In what ways has it suppressed political participation and action, and in what ways has it inspired political engagement, resistance, and creativity? What endures from this period—in memory, in practice, in institutions—that might encourage us now and sustain us in the years to come?

  Panelists

  • M. Gessen, The New York Times
  • Nicole Hemmer, Vanderbilt University
  • Phil Klay, Fairfield University
  • Hari Kunzru, Harper's Magazine

  Moderator

  • Steve Coll, The Economist
  4:45PM – 5:00PM EDT
  Closing Remarks

Speakers

• Alex Abdo

  Litigation Director, Knight Institute

• Rozina Ali

  The New York Times Magazine

• Assia Boundaoui

  Inverse Surveillance Project

• David Cole

  Georgetown University Law Center

• Steve Coll

  The Economist

• Spencer Davis

  Columbia Daily Spectator

• Nadine Farid Johnson

  Policy Director, Knight Institute

• M. Gessen

  The New York Times

• Nicole Hemmer

  Vanderbilt University

• Jameel Jaffer

  Executive Director, Knight Institute

• Brett Max Kaufman

  American Civil Liberties Union

• Azmat Khan

  Simon and June Li Center for Global Journalism at Columbia Journalism School

• Phil Klay

  Fairfield University

• Sharif Abdel Kouddous

  Drop Site News

• Hari Kunzru

  Harper's Magazine

• Mohsen Mahdawi

  Columbia University

• Shourideh C. Molavi

  Columbia University

• Alberto Mora

  Former General Counsel of the Department of Navy

• Emily Pickering

  Columbia Daily Spectator

• Daksha Pillai

  Columbia Daily Spectator

• Lydia Polgreen

  The New York Times

• Aziz Rana

  Boston College Law School

• Astha Sharma Pokharel

  Center for Constitutional Rights

• Shirin Sinnar

  Stanford Law School

• Mohamedou Ould Slahi
• Prem Thakker

  Zeteo

• Emily Tripp

  Airwars

Related Content

• Institute Update The Forever War and the First Amendment
  By Jameel Jaffer
  August 11, 2026

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