We recently discussed the rise of a generation of censors as young people embrace the role of government and corporate censorship. The erosion of free speech rights is manifest in a chilling poll from the Pew Research Center that shows a huge jump in favor of censorship among citizens with almost half now supporting the government barring “misinformation.” The shift is almost entirely among Democrats who (like Democratic leaders) now overwhelming favor fewer free speech protections and more government control over speech.
The poll shows 48 percent of survey respondents supporting government censorship of misinformation as compared to 39 percent in 2018.
Republicans have become more protective of free speech but the shift among Democratic voters is startling. In 2018, just 40 percent of Democrats supported censorship by the government and Big Tech. It is now 65 percent.
The poll reflects the move among Democratic politicians for years in calling for censorship. We previously discussed the unrelenting drumbeat of censorship on the Internet from Democratic leaders, including President-elect Joe Biden.
As previously discussed, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey appeared at a key hearing in which he followed up his apology for censoring the Hunter Biden story by pledging more censorship. One of the most chilling moments came from Delaware Senator Chris Coons who demonstrated the very essence of the “slippery slope” danger.
Dorsey: Well, misleading information, as you are aware, is a large problem. It’s hard to define it completely and cohesively. We wanted to scope our approach to start to focus on the highest severity of harm. We focused on three areas, manipulated media, which you mentioned, civic integrity around the election, specifically in public health, specifically around COVID. We wanted to make sure that our resources that we have the greatest impact on where we believe the greatest severity of harm is going to be. Our policies are living documents. They will evolve. We will add to them, but we thought it important that we focus our energies and prioritize the work as much as we could.
Coons: Well, Mr. Dorsey, I’ll close with this. I cannot think of a greater harm than climate change, which is transforming literally our planet and causing harm to our entire world. I think we’re experiencing significant harm as we speak. I recognize the pandemic and misinformation about COVID-19, manipulated media also cause harm, but I’d urge you to reconsider that because helping to disseminate climate denialism, in my view, further facilitates and accelerates one of the greatest existential threats to our world. So thank you to both of our witnesses.
Notably, Dorsey starts with the same argument made by free speech advocates: “Well, misleading information, as you are aware, is a large problem. It’s hard to define it completely and cohesively.” However, instead of then raising concerns over censoring views and comments on the basis for such an amorphous category, Coons pressed for an expansion of the categories of censored material to prevent people from sharing any views that he considers “climate denialism”
There is, of course, a wide array of views that different people or different groups would declare “harmful.” Indeed, Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal seemed to take the opposite meaning from Twitter admitting that it was wrong to censor the Biden story. Blumenthal said that he was “concerned that both of your companies are, in fact, backsliding or retrenching, that you are failing to take action against dangerous disinformation.” Accordingly, he demanded an answer to this question:
“Will you commit to the same kind of robust content modification playbook in this coming election, including fact checking, labeling, reducing the spread of misinformation, and other steps, even for politicians in the runoff elections ahead?”
“Robust content modification” has a certain Orwellian feel to it. It is not content modification. It is censorship.
This call has now been picked up by academics and members of the media.Faculty and editors are now actively supporting modern versions of book-burning with blacklists and bans for those with opposing political views. Columbia Journalism School Dean Steve Coll has denounced the “weaponization” of free speech, which appears to be the use of free speech by those on the right. So the dean of one of the premier journalism schools now supports censorship.
Free speech advocates are facing a generational shift that is now being reflected in our law schools, where free speech principles were once a touchstone of the rule of law. As millions of students are taught that free speech is a threat and that “China is right” about censorship, these figures are shaping a new society in their own intolerant images.
If it was only just ‘misinformation’ they were censoring. Truth is being censored so that’s a big problem.
Here’s the truth they want to censor:
‘We have a demented president about to start a nuclear war, who is demanding more spending at a time of rampant inflation and economic contraction, letting millions invade the country illegally, and allowing crime to run amok in the cities as children are indoctrinated with crap.’
Well, for some reason this post got deleted out of the blog. It’s well worth the read.
https://www.westernjournal.com/exclusive-gen-flynn-midst-fascist-power-grab-people-still-options/?utm_source=Email&utm_medium=aa-breaking&utm_campaign=can&utm_content=firefly&ats_es=4b5c429f887fae96cbd6b730a05ed04b
Olly,
And it’s well worth reading Turley’s fair-minded and impartial estimation of Flynn:
“For those who love our Constitution and our country, the statement of Gen. Flynn could not be more offensive or grotesque. We have our flaws and our imperfections. However, the thing that has sustained up for over two centuries is our Constitution. Despite wars and every type of national trauma, we are still here. Our political differences have never become so great as to shake our common article of faith in our Constitution. Of course, it takes a leap of faith by every citizen to remain constitutionally loyal even when you have not prevailed politically. Flynn previously appeared to call for martial law to keep Trump in office. Even with his later backtracking on the call for a coup, Flynn has clearly lost the article of faith that binds us to each other. Instead, he appears adrift in the type of floating rage of the QAnon realm.”
https://jonathanturley.org/2021/06/04/to-support-and-defend-the-constitution-of-the-united-states-micheal-flynns-crisis-of-constitutional-faith/
Flynn is a disgraceful Trumpist.
Jeff Silberman
@Jeff Silberman – of course your name is “Silberman”
How about this? Stop trying to impose your opinions on the rest of us while using left wing framing.
The election was likely stolen and Flynn is a hero for trying to assert authority and justice. Maybe you don’t belong over with us, Jeff if you don’t understand our basic argumentation. You’re not going to make us see things your way using persuasive language. If that worked the media would have straightened us out last year
There is an old saying in computer security, a tool which reports false positives is worse than no tool at all. The reason is this, the tool is not free, and if it develops a reputation of not being accurate it will be ignored. At least with no tools, you haven’t spend money on something that is just going to be ignored because it reports falsely.