> SIO and its researchers have been sued three times by conservative groups alleging that its researchers colluded illegally with the federal government to censor speech, forcing Stanford to spend millions of dollars to defend its staff and students.
This is the government investigating whether the government colluded with this private entity to take actions that violate the First Amendment. We have seen a lot of that lately, with government agencies leaning on private entities to avoid scrutiny and limit legal relief when it comes to 1A cases. Stanford's involvement is peripheral, the oversight is limited to their interactions with the government.
I suppose a liberty-minded individual would suggest that a private entity should not collude with the government, if it wants to avoid government oversight.