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89 Geo. Wash. L. Rev. Arguendo 1 (2021)

handle is hein.journals/gwargu89 and id is 1 raw text is: NOTE Click at Your Own Risk: Free Speech for Public Employees in the Social Media Age Madyson Hopkins* ABSTRACT An individual's right to exercise free speech is one of the most fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution. However, individuals who work for the government do not receive the same protections over their speech as private citizens. Their speech is protected to a lesser degree, and if a public employee challenges a silencing of their speech, this action is subject to the Pickering test, a multistep balancing test that is convoluted and inconsistent across federal circuits. As so much ofspeech is made online through social media, it is even more important that courts utilize a consistent test. This Note discusses the evolution of the Pickering test and looks to its application in modern social media cases. Additionally, this Note argues that a modified Pickering test requiring an actual disruption standard of evidence and abandoning the private citizen requirement is necessary to clarify the test's application and to create consistent outcomes. TABLE OF CONTENTS IN TR O D U CTIO N ......................................................................................... 2 I. B A CK GR O U N D ................................................................................ 4 A. Introduction of the Pickering Test ..........................................4 B. Establishing a Public Concern Threshold.............................. 5 C. Establishing a Private Citizen Requirement ...........................7 D. The Circuit Split Over the Evidentiary Standard Required Under the Balancing Test ...................................................... 9 * J.D., expected May 2021, The George Washington University Law School. March 2021 Vol. 89 1