Digital Censorship

The internet has certainly had a massive impact on freedom of expression in the 21st century. As the Council of Europe states, “You have the freedom to express yourself online and to access information and the opinions and expressions of others. This includes political speech, views on religion, opinions and expressions that are favourably received or regarded as inoffensive, but also those that may offend, shock or disturb others. You should have due regard to the reputation or rights of others, including their right to privacy. Restrictions may apply to expressions which incite discrimination, hatred or violence. These restrictions must be lawful, narrowly tailored and executed with court oversight.”

Many social media platforms have seen major changes and adaptations to how they function over the last decade. “One significant issue is that social media is still very much an evolving platform. Twitter began really as a tool that allowed those in social circles to essentially “shout out” to one another, but it has increasingly become a broadcast platform to reach the masses.” In April 2022, Twitter was purchased by Elon Musk, who decided that the company would allow all protected First Amendment free speech. This was met with varying results.

That is not to say that forms of censorship do not take place on the internet. For instance, many privately owned social media platforms have gone through different ideations of how they deal with various controversial topics respectively. One such company that has seen many changes in operation is YouTube. “In the early days of the platform, YouTube did all it could to funnel viewers to “Loose Change,” the film arguing that 9/11 was an inside job, helping make it a phenomenally influential take. Conspiracy garbage — on Covid-19 vaccines, Davos, flat Earth — is favored content by YouTube to this day, because it engages viewers for hours on end.” On the other side of the coin, YouTube is in part responsible for the evolution of what is referred to as ‘algospeak’.

“Algospeak refers to code words or turns of phrase users have adopted in an effort to create a brand-safe lexicon that will avoid getting their posts removed or down-ranked by content moderation systems. For instance, in many online videos, it’s common to say “unalive” rather than “dead,” “SA” instead of “sexual assault,” or “spicy eggplant” instead of “vibrator.” This change in language reflects the notion that creators are limiting their freedom of expression due to fear of being demonized and losing income from these companies.

While there seems to be forms of oppressive censorship taking place online to varying degrees, prohibition of certain content is both important and necessary. One protection set in place details: “Section 1470 of Title 18, United States Code, prohibits any individual from knowingly transferring or attempting to transfer obscene matter using the U.S. mail or any means or facility of interstate or foreign commerce to a minor under 16 years of age. Convicted offenders face fines and imprisonment for up to 10 years. In addition, Section 1466A of Title 18, United State Code, makes it illegal for any person to knowingly produce, distribute, receive, or possess with intent to transfer or distribute visual representations, such as drawings, cartoons, or paintings that appear to depict minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct and are deemed obscene.

Freedom of expression, in my opinion, should be valued extremely highly, while keeping in mind that there can be consequences to how you express and represent yourself. The internet should be a safe place for everyone to learn and express themselves. Rights to access the opinions and stories that others shared should also be extremely important, so long as everyone is comfortable in expressing themselves.