Why do some people decide to censor themselves? It’s a question that’s relevant across the world, but is particularly pertinent in the US academic context at the moment. In this revealing episode of our weekly podcast, Beth Daley, Editor of The Conversation in the US, speaks candidly of how a few academics have recently requested changes to published articles to remove certain language, have articles taken down or delay pieces on issues that may be seen as controversial by the federal government. These are requests we cannot accede to.

There’s an understanding of the issue in play and the fears across the academy, but it raises the matter of what the impact of self-censorship among researchers might be. What does it mean to drop words like “diversity, equity and inclusion” from funding applications or avoid terms like “climate crisis”? The episode goes on to talk to self-censorship expert Daniel Bar-Tal of Tel Aviv University about what drives people to censor themselves, and the consequences for society.