How to Check Your Sources: Book Censorship News, September 25, 2026

Text reads “Nashville School Pulls LGBTQIA+ Books After Christian Teacher Was Disciplined for Refusing To Read One|WFMD The Tennessee Star reported that, according to the First Liberty Institute—a nonprofit legal organization—the 10 Knowledge is Power Program (KIPP) schools in Nashville have taken out books that include same-sex marriage.”” data-old-src=”data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns=’http://www.w3.org/2000/svg’%20viewBox=’0%200%201024%20190’%3E%3C/svg%3E” src=”https://pmnsports.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/localimages/1Nashville_KIPP_Schools_Remove_L-25E2-2580-25A6_News___School_Library_Journal-1024×190.jpg.optimal.jpg”> Listed below in the roundup, this was the text:

The outlet that shared this heading, link, and description of the link does not matter excessive. This isn’t about shaming them. Their work is excellent and trust by experts across the country. Rather, this example works as a prime chance to speak about why doing the work of sharing book censorship news is Tough and why it is that nationwide companies that track book censorship, consisting of PEN America and the American Library Association, can not have precise counts, no matter how tough and well-done their work is. Excellent outlets can still make errors when it concerns sourcing details since we’re swimming in a mis -and dis- info environment. Going back to do a deep dive requires time and often extra background understanding that not everybody has or understands to search for.

This summertime, I discussed the work that enters into tracking book censorship and sharing the links each week in Literary Activism. It’s not as simple as a tracked Google search. I do not track any keywords at all. I keep a list of about 12-15 terms that I do a hand look for every weekday, understanding that the list moves depending upon the info I’m checking out about where and how schools, libraries, news media, and book banners themselves are explaining book censorship.

The link roundup envisioned above was released on September 3, 2026. That week, I kept discovering stories about LGBTQ +books being prohibited by KIPP schools in Nashville in my searches. It’s a story that feels definitely real, and it may hold true. As of today, 3 and a half weeks later on, there’s still no conclusive documents or news story showing that this really taken place. There’s no evidence that addresses the number of books were eliminated, or which books they were. There are a lot of links talking about this book elimination, however not a single one has actually been from a trusted outlet.

The work of sharing book censorship news includes validating sources, and often that can imply a great deal of time invested going no place. This story is case in point.

From the very start of the example above: The Tennessee Starthe website referenced in the image above, is not, in truth, where the connected text goes. The connected text goes to WFMDa Nashville radio station site. Clicking that WFMD link reveals the following:

Checking out the real story even more validates that there’s no story here at all. Or a minimum of, the story this is supposedly about is not what the story informs readers. This is a story about a teacher at KIPP– a public charter school— who won a suit versus the school. It is not about books being gotten rid of from the school library. Here’s the start of the Tennessee Star’s reporting:

The word” got rid of “links to a news release from First Liberty Institute. The First Liberty Institute is” the biggest legal company in the country devoted specifically to safeguarding spiritual liberty for all Americans. Our company believe that every American of any faith– or no faith at all– has an essential right to follow their conscience and live according to their beliefs.” Amongst the success this conservative Christian legal company promotes on its site The time the Supreme Court ruled that a bakeshop owner was permitted to victimize a queer couple. Yes, while it’s real that First Liberty Institute is a not-for-profit, it’s definitely not without predisposition; not-for-profit does not correspond to nonpartisan.

Predisposition of the legal time aside, journalism release informs a somewhat various story than what is reported in the Star

The teacher at the center of the story connected to First Liberty previously this year when KIPP, his company, asked him to check out from 2 books in the curriculum that pointed out same-sex marital relationship. It protested his genuinely held religions. That belief, plus the state’s” adult authorization” laws, would make a great case that his rights were breached( who appreciates the trainees or their moms and dads who might not concur, however that’s neither here nor there).

Journalism release mentions the following:

The school concurred in March 2026 to offer affordable spiritual lodgings to all personnel, and now, they have actually gotten rid of books that might break Tennessee law concerning adult authorization.

[…]

[H]e challenged 2 books including same-sex marital relationship. Following a need letter from First Liberty, the school consented to accommodate any affordable spiritual demands. Even more, due to Tennessee law needing adult grant the mentor of sexual preference or gender identity, KIPP Nashville proactively notified the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office that it eliminated considerable questionable products, consisting of various books, from its 2026-2027 curriculum in an effort to appreciate the faiths of its personnel, trainees, and moms and dads.

No place in this news release are the titles of the books that were eliminated from the curriculum noted. There were 2, and neither was from the library, as reported by the StarThe First Liberty Institute even more kept in mind that the State Attorney General validated that KIPP eliminated “many books” from its curriculum for the 2026-2027 academic year.

There’s a lot to unload because declaration, starting with the reality that this still wasn’t the library, as reported by the Star (and duplicated by Fox News, which then spread out onto other “news” websites). It was the curriculum, which runs in a different way and individually from the library. Utilizing the word “library” permits this story to land on search results pages and catches the recognized attention being paid to book censorship in libraries

Another thing worth keeping in mind is that neither journalism release nor the State Attorney General names the books gotten rid of from the curriculum (we will arrive). The Tennessee State Attorney is among the signatories on an Amicus Brief in a case presently in the 11th Circuitassociated to Florida’s book restrictions. This suggests he’s amongst those excited to require book censorship anywhere and nevertheless he wants in Tennessee– and last fall, we saw Tennessee’s Secretary of State requiring book eliminations in town libraries statewide in action to Trump’s Executive Order on “Defending Women from Gender Ideology.”

At this moment, the story does not build up, and none of its sources should have to be taken seriously. Now it’s time to do another search, this time utilizing keywords related to the false information to see if we can discover a much better source.

It’s worth pointing out a number of extra crucial aspects here, too. KIPP is a public school, so it is possible to send public records demands. This is a crucial tool in revealing book censorship, and it’s an essential tool press reporters utilize to share these stories with confirmed truths. Second, and particularly crucial here, Tennessee limits those public records demands to state homeowners That indicates anybody without a Tennessee address can not ask for those products, restricting who might validate these reports and stories (more precisely, non-residents can request them, however can be quickly rejected).

Here’s what a brand-new look for a story about the elimination of LGBTQ+ books from KIPP Nashville, time limited to the date of the First Institute’s news release (August 28, 2026) and the start of this week (September 21, 2026).

Fox News, The Center Square( a conservative outlet concentrated on” taxpayer perceptiveness”), Christian Post, Yahoo( reposting a National Enquirer story that names among the books Rivera declined to check out as In Our Mothers’ House[pageoneofresultsforkippnashvillelgbtqbookremove” data-old-src=”data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns=’http://www.w3.org/2000/svg’%20viewBox=’0%200%201024%201004’%3E%3C/svg%3E” src=”https://pmnsports.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/localimages/kipp_nashville_lgbtq_book_remove_-_Google_Search-1024×1004.jpg.optimal.jpg”>page two of search for page one of results for kipp nashville lgbtq book remove ” data-old-src=”data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns=’http://www.w3.org/2000/svg’%20viewBox=’0%200%201024%201007’%3E%3C/svg%3E” src=”https://pmnsports.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/localimages/1kipp_nashville_lgbtq_book_remove_-_Google_Search-1024×1007.jpg.optimal.jpg”> ), and a website called Belief Net appear in this search. Attempting numerous mixes of those exact same keywords raises the very same couple of sources.

When you broaden the search beyond Google’s News tab, it does not improve:

Now there are much more outright pro-religious websites turning up sharing the exact same story. The CBN story( Christian Broadcast Network, not to be puzzled with CBS )– both the video and the link seen in the image above– does clarify the 2nd title that Rivera declined to check out, Stella Brings the Family

There is one outlier. A YouTube link to a page called Queer News Tonight– a queer not-for-profit outlet– declares that KIPP got rid of 20 titles from the curriculumThey do not point out where they get this number, nor name the books. It’s the only outlet that offers a number, asking the concern of where that originated from. Surprisingly, they reference the SCOTUS pastry shop case, which was dealt with by the very same group representing this teacher.

Once again, there’s no concern that a minimum of 2 books were gotten rid of. They were gotten rid of from the curriculum and not from the library. It is extremely possible that other LGBTQ + books were eliminated. Not a single outlet has actually done more than parrot the talking points supplied by the First Liberty Institute. That is not an objective source, and their objective in getting the word out is to continue planting the seed into the minds of news customers that there are” naughty “books in schools and school libraries which individuals’s spiritual liberties are at stake by sending their kids to public schools.

The pro-” academic option” advertisement on the Tennessee Star ‘s page was no mishap.

Precision and validating info matter. It can look simple to assemble links and share them, however it’s not. Mishaps occur, and stopping working to completely examine one’s sources can result in sharing unreliable info. We are all accountable for discovering to be media literate and news-savvy. Making the effort to stroll back through stories when they’re shared can teach you unknown quantities about where and how news is informed, and whether it needs to be shared as reality.

Expert news has actually been withering for years, and we’re in an age where a growing number of customers get their news from social networks, instead of from expert reporters. We’re likewise having a hard time underneath the truth of requiring paywalls to sustain news media, with the reality that conservative outlets have unknown quantities of cash that permit them to spread their lies and false information commonly and easily.

Constantly take a look at who is informing the story and what advantage they obtain from it. When it comes to KIPP eliminating books from the library in Nashville, it’s First Institute, it’s conservative news rags, and it’s folks who’ve been gushing the exact same “adult rights” rubbish in an effort to defund public organizations for many years. There’s no concern that there’s been book censorship here; the concern is what that in fact requires, and no one has actually offered a genuine response. This is a story crafted from a news release composed by a source with a beneficial interest in spreading out lies and motivating worry in the minds of those doing their tasks as teachers and curators.

Related: How to Read a Press Release from the Federal Government

Related: How to Own a News Cycle

• A Judge has actually okayed for the claim in Utah over the state law prohibiting books from all schools to move on This is the one where numerous authors taken legal action against when their titles were gotten rid of. We’ll see what takes place here, and I understand I’m specifically interested if we’ll see a flurry of extra titles prohibited in the interim. That’s what took place when the suit was submitted previously this year.
• The Florida Department of Education launched the yearly list of books prohibited at school districts throughout the stateThe short article here keeps in mind how there’s such a divide in between schools prohibiting en mass and those not prohibiting at all in the state. (One of my books was prohibited in 3 districts).
• The First Circuit was bothered by Trump’s strategies to take apart 4 federal companies– consisting of the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)– however they could not articulate what going “too far” implied. This is an intriguing advancementin among the 2 federal claims versus the taking apart of the IMLS, Rhode Island v. Trump— Trump’s group appealed, stating that they needed to right to carry out executive orders under the Administrative Procedures Act (the important things that the initial choice stated they did not deserve to do).
• After requiring schools eliminate books from the “state’s list” of over 2,200 titles, Texas’s Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick is now declaring he didn’t state that there’s a list which books like Nightare great to be in schools. Whoops
• Homeowners in Alamance County, North Carolina, are worried the number of conservatives have actually been selected to the library board and how that does not represent the county
• The battle over The Perks of Being a Wallflowerremaining or being gotten rid of from Readington School District (NJ) is so extreme that a policeman will be at every board satisfying the remainder of the yearRemember … New Jersey has an anti-book prohibiting law.
• The genuine news from this year’s release of the books prohibited in Florida schools last academic year is that TWO districts represented 66% of the overall restrictionsThose districts are naturally ones where a few of the nationwide book prohibiting leaders grumble on the routine.
• We constantly understand the restriction on trans books for minors in Alabama town libraries would never ever be “simply” the trans books for minors. It’s all trans books, and those collaborating this on behalf of the GOP– the Alabama Public Library Service in this case– aspire to take part in the censorship. Curators are pressing back
• Knox County Schools (TN) are renovating their evaluation committees— something they promised to do following the elimination of Rootsin the district. This committee’s structure is going to take a great deal of work to achieve, and they’ll be trained on how to make sure products are lined up with the state’s laws on age-appropriate products. There’s a helluva line here that pleads the concern of whether or not a committee examining books for suitability to a law produced by a conservative conspiracy theory can ever be neutral: “Members will likewise get training from an outdoors legal professional to assist guarantee the evaluation procedure stays neutral.”
• This is an actually great piece about the truths of librarianship and bookselling in Arkansas under ACT 372: “The political rhetoric behind this law has actually been directed at libraries and curators, not corporations like Walmart and Target, who offer these very same raunchy “damaging” books for earnings. Some who protect Act 372 reject that they are prohibiting books by pointing out that the books they are censoring in libraries are still offered for purchase. This is a culture war crusade versus libraries, not business book-sellers. I do not desire any of the almost 1,700 staff members who operate at the more than 225 town libraries in Arkansas to be prosecuted. Even if they are eventually acquitted, the procedure would be frightening and scarring.”
• The Human Rights Defense Center is taking legal action against Dallas County, Sheriff Marian Brown and Chief Deputy Shane Sowell (TX) for their brand-new guidelines producing a near overall restriction on books and regulars for those experiencing imprisonmentin the county.
• Hollidaysburg Area School Board (PA) is lastly permitting an AP Human Geography book to be authorized for usage in the class. Why was it rejected in the past, you may ask? You understand why– a board member sobbing that the book’s addition of gender identity is” brainwashing.”
• King George County Schools( VA) wished to reject middle schoolers the right to a GSA club. The trainees were taking legal action against and before lawsuits were to occur, think what the school chose to permitThere is legal precedent for GSA and other Rainbow Clubs lawfully, thanks to the Equal Access Act of 1989, area 20
• Peoria Unified School District( AZ) will reassess their anti-DEI policies, relabeling them something that is … likewise quite anti-DEI. All of this comes from the prohibiting of a number of books by marginalized authors in the district
• The 10th United States Court of Appeals is permitting an Oklahoma law restricting conversations of race and sex in the class to continueThe judges’ analysis of this law is definitely generous, provided all we understand about how republican politicians really interview their unclear laws as broadly as possible. This one will produce an additional chilling result on the books and lessons teachers offer trainees for worry of lawsuits.
• ” The public library is not an ideology. It is not woke. It is not extreme,” he stated.” It is simply the general public library. The general public incorporates all of the neighborhood– neighborhood that you either concur with or you disagree with. “Such an excellent line here. This is from a piece about the current on the efforts to privatize Fresno Public Library( CA ), which has actually been under attack from conservative panic makers for several years.
• This is a terrific piece from Stephana Ferrell about what’s actually suggested by “you can simply purchase the bookin disputes about prohibiting books in school and town libraries.
• The Library Association of Alberta is motivating libraries to close on October 1 in demonstration of the province’s brand-new law prohibiting all books with “graphic sexual material “for those under 15 A tip no such thing exists.
• In jail censorship news, the Sixth Circuit is restoring a claim from a put behind bars person who states his rights were breached when a mailroom clerk seized a book from him. The book was composed by the person’s sibling
• The Caldwell County Board of Education( NC) has actually upgraded the district’s book obstacle policies to line up with the state’s brand-new requirements. Now it allows much more individuals to submit difficulties to books they do not like, consisting of school board members and county locals who do not have trainees in the district
• Hillsborough County School Board (FL) has a brand-new round of book difficulties from a regional book banner.The pastor from North Carolina who extols being the” book prohibiting pastor “made a look at the program, too.
• Simply read this page on the Cobb County School District( GA) web page spreading out the GOP’s talking points about books and what is or isn’t proper in schools. This is the playbook, now policy in a school district. Miller Test who nowThe district got rid of The Bluest Eyefrom school libraries Keep in mind the superintendent firmly insists that the restriction on Morrison’s classic is not a book restriction
• The Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library( KS) saw their library board conference swarmed by the regional GOP who is requiring that books in the collection be moved or eliminatedThey’re “securing the kids. “Remember this is the very same GOP securing pedophiles, so you got ta ask which is it, the kids or the kids lawbreakers?
• Wake County Schools( NC ) are analyzing a brand-new state law in such a method that must be kept in mind. No longer can moms and dads grumble to get books prohibited from school librariesThey can just get their kids’ access to the book halted.
• ” Superintendent Cabral stated his issue about the application of the policies developed after he got a list of books and was asked to figure out which titles need to be thought about questionable and need an opposing perspective. Amongst the titles gone over were books about Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce, Barack Obama and other public figures, in addition to works of fiction such as The Blood of Olympus by Rick Riordan and Insurgent by Veronica Roth. “I do not have an issue with well balanced books and I understand we have a policy,” Cabral stated throughout the conversation. “But what was being asked of me is to take a look at these lists of books and consider them questionable and after that offer a balance.”” This remains in Redlands Unified School District in Californiawhere conservative members of the school board have actually been consumed with prohibiting books and “stabilizing viewpoints” in the library collections for many years. Remember that the state has an anti-book restriction law.
• And as an upgrade to the above, the Redlands board has actually passed their brand-new policy to “stabilize” material in the librariesA genuine quote from a genuine individual on the board: “”This thing has actually presumed off the rails in our libraries (is that material) is either neutral or far left-leaning,” Olson stated Tuesday. “… What if it was all conservative material in the library? … I likewise would not value that. I do not believe we need to have (books that lean) all best or on the. This is an issue we need to take on. Our households would value that. We lose individuals all the time due to the fact that we do not have balance in our schools.””
• Davis Joint Unified School District (CA) has actually been handling a lady grumbling about trans books in the school library brochure. This editorial is fascinating because it puts those problems in context— what does the variety of books appearing under a library brochure search even suggest? Relatedly, California has a restriction on book prohibits based upon ideological or political factors.
• The MyCentralJersey.com editorial board has actually composed a piece about why the state is worthy of much better than a culture war over booksOnce again, worth repeating that New Jersey has a restriction on book restrictions. If these things are being passed, they likewise require to be implemented. Maryland’s doing it. Other states can, too.
• The Summit County Library Board of Directors (UT) will not be prohibiting the book Sex Is a Funny Word from racks
• Here’s a great piece from an author who has actually read through the 20 books prohibited by Elizabeth School District(CO)– a school presently associated with a suit over their rights to prohibit whatever books they want. What makes this piece great is it straight-out describes how claims of unsuitable material are absolutely nothing however a video game of telephone and the school reveals its double requirements through the other books it needs in English classes.
• “The Arkansas Department of Corrections will move its focus far from developing a policy restricting access to physical booksin an effort to avoid controlled substances from getting in jails, authorities informed the state corrections board Monday.” They’re still going to make it much easier to penalize 3rd parties assisting supply products to those on the within, and the corrections board chair actually does not desire folks composing headings about them prohibiting books. The post is a great read for comprehending the problem.
• A Texas state agent pushed the University of North Texas to eliminate a web resource from its library web page about LGBTQ+ history. The pride these bigots have not just in spreading out lies however in removing history informs you the entire story.
• The ACLU of Iowa has actually launched a helpful sheet for folks attempting to browse the anti-LGBTQ+ law, SF 496. Here’s what the law does and does not imply when it pertains to book restrictions
• The Missouri Supreme Court will choose the legality of the state law that has actually caused extensive book prohibiting.
• People of Bridgewater, New Jersey, appeared to the most recent board conference to safeguard their school curators. Why? Due to the fact that there’ve been problems over books in the libraries. This is all these individuals have
• Keep In Mind Luanne James in Rutherford County, Tennessee, the library director fired for not eliminating the LGBTQ+ books a number of board members didn’t like? She’s now taking legal action against the library board