PEN America, a free-speech group that tracks school book removals, counted 11,982 bans in U.S. public schools in the 2025-26 school year, up from 6,870 the year before. Texas led every state after its new law, SB 13, took effect.
Medium
Texas took the top spot from Florida after its new library law, SB 13, took effect.
The timing is supported by the law's Sept. 1, 2025 effective date in Texas Legislature records. However, the story implies the law caused Texas's rise without attributing that link to PEN or any other source.
Medium
The 2025-26 removals hit 7,370 different titles in 114 districts.
Plausibly from the PEN report, but the story does not explicitly attribute these figures. The 114-district figure should be checked against PEN, since it seems low next to more than 8,100 bans in Texas alone.
Medium
Stephen King was the most-pulled author for the second straight year, with 312 removals.
Likely from PEN's data, but the story states it without explicit attribution, and none of the listed sources' headlines confirm the specific figure.