There are some disturbing trends emerging in this country with regard to free speech, censorship and businesses with monopolized platforms, reach, power, and influence deciding what constitutes appropriate content, discourse, ideas, and language.
I realize that we are in a divisive, politically, and socially contentious period but this isn’t the first time in this country where we have had a politically and socially charged environment. And somehow free speech survived, there was no need for massive censorship policies, and corporations weren’t dictating the terms regarding appropriate social and intellectual discourse. In fact, this was always the beauty of America compared to other countries like communist China, Russia and the Eastern Bloc countries which were so repressive regarding state sponsored propaganda, censorship of ideas, controlling public discourse and opinions, and deciding what was appropriate content for books, films, news, journalism and the overall media.
There are a lot of things happening at the moment in this country, but this is by far the most dangerous and important issue that needs to be addressed by the American people right now. In fact, this principle of having protected free speech, freedom and exchange of ideas (all ideas), and an open marketplace of public discourse which denounces and refrains from censorship practices is a primary right and goal for all Americans to want to protect and stand against those who wish to violate this basic precept.
In having the technology companies with monopolized platforms which by their very size and nature control the market, i.e., there are no viable competitors for consumers to switch to or find comparable services for all practical purposes. And then let these entities dictate public discourse and what is acceptable speech, writing material, and socially and politically acceptable causes, positions and ideas sets a very bad precedent for this country. This is definitely a change for the worse. I don’t care which side of the political and social spectrum one belongs, even if one benefits from this current state of affairs individually, this is overwhelmingly bad for everyone to have this current trend toward corporate sponsored censorship of thought, ideas, and materials.
This is because one may benefit now from the current political and social environment, but what happens in the future when some other political and social ideologies or practices come into vogue, power, and mainstream adoption? And now you are on the outside looking in, and now you are the one who is being censored, suppressed, and denied participation in the market of ideas, thought, and public discourse.
In point of fact, these technology companies fail to realize that by promoting this belief, concept, idea and authoritarian right to decide arbitrarily and subjectively what is appropriate content, discourse, and acceptable thought, that effectively, they are setting a very bad precedent for their own demise. Moreover, this is also contrary to democracy, the free market, and the creative world of competitive ideas and thinking. Who is to say in ten years a movement comes into power, gets elected to government positions, and arbitrarily and subjectively decides that all social media platforms are outright harmful, and shuts these down permanently in an equally authoritarian manner?
Hence, technology companies like applying these censorship policies to other people, but what happens when somebody else starts applying the same standards to their organizational operations and practices. This is why freedom of public discourse and thought is such a profoundly important principle to uphold for everyone in society, it protects everyone equally. As tastes change, power dynamics shift, social and political ideals come and go, but free speech and refraining from pernicious censorship practices should remain the backbone of America’s value system as a country. To do otherwise, hurts all Americans regardless of your political, social, and cultural affiliation.
Courtesy of John Mark Gray,
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