TribCast: Texas A&M firing reignites campus free speech battles

Sign up for The Brief, The Texas Tribune’s daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news.

---

This week on the TribCast, Matthew and Eleanor dive into the current battles lines in the free speech wars that have long animated college campuses. The issue is back in the spotlight after Texas A&M University fired a professor after a clash with a student over gender identity content in a children’s literature class and Texas State University fired a professor for a speech in which he allegedly incited violence.

Heightening all of this is the political assassination of Charlie Kirk, a right-wing activist who made his name debating college students and poking at what he saw as the left-leaning culture on university campuses.

To help untangle all of these threads, they are joined by Texas Tribune higher education reporter Jessica Priest and Zach Greenberg, faculty legal defense counsel at the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression.

Watch the video above, or subscribe to the TribCast on iTunes, Spotify, or RSS. New episodes every Tuesday.

---

Three featured TribFest speakers confirmed! You don’t want to miss ​​Deb Haaland, former U.S. Secretary of the Interior and 2026 Democratic candidate for New Mexico governor; state Sen. Joan Huffman, R-Houston and 2026 Republican candidate for Texas Attorney General; and Jake Tapper, anchor of CNN’s “The Lead” and “State of the Union” at the 15th annual Texas Tribune Festival, Nov. 13–15 in downtown Austin. Get your tickets today!

TribFest 2025 is presented by JPMorganChase.