While buzz surrounding the release of The Interview may not have resulted from the movies merit, the cyber hack in response to its approaching release sparked a national conversation on freedom of speech in the face of a possible terrorist threat.

Recent international challenges to free speech in pop culture and in print were the topic of the International Institutes Round Table on Thursday evening at the Michigan League.

The round table included Prof. Juan Cole, director for the Center for Middle Eastern and North African Studies; Daniel Herbert, associate professor of screen arts and culture; and Law Profs. Herzog and Steven Ratner.

Prof. Karla Mallette, director of the Center for European Studies and Islamic Studies Program, served as the moderator for the discussion and said the panel was held to consider recent challenges to freedom of speech, which she characterized as the conceptual cornerstone of liberal society.

To open, Mallette cited the recent controversy over The Interview and how its plot, which revolved around the assassination of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un, resulted in a cyber attack on Sony Pictures.

The movie essentially blew up in Sonys hands, making Sony Pictures a target in one of the most successful cyber-terrorism campaigns on record, Mallette said.

Herbert said he believed it was unlikely that The Interview would cause a domino effect in Hollywood and would not result in qualms among producers and filmmakers toward releasing similar movies. He said, however, the effect of the hack on Sony has been chilling.

Its not this chilling effect that concerns me most, but rather, the chilling effect that the Sony hackers could and likely will hack on the freedom of discretion of private individuals who work in a large institution, Herbert said.

Ratner specializes in counter-terrorism, human rights and international law. He focused his discussion on the regulation of speech in international communities on the basis of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

In his argument, Ratner said globally, court cases concerning free speech often result in restrictions on the speakers rights, unlike in the United States.

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University round table examines challenges to free speech