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Friday, February 19, 2016

FCC Commissioner: Free Speech Is Endangered, From Campuses to the Internet

FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai warned about the erosion of free speech in an interview with the Washington Examiner on Tuesday, making a crucial point about how a generation comfortable with thuggish intimidation on campuses and the Internet will have a weak immune system against the virus of official censorship. Liberty is a habit, which Pai perceptively warned we are losing.

“Largely what we’re seeing, especially on college campuses, is that if my view is in the majority and I don’t agree with your view, then I have the right to shout you down, disrupt your events, or otherwise suppress your ability to get your voice heard,” said Pai.

Off-campus, he cited Twitter’s recent creation of a speech-policing “Trust and Safety” board— loaded with social justice warrior activists — as an example of private censorship that erodes our resistance to government speech and thought control.

“Private actors like Twitter have the freedom to operate their platform as they see fit, [but] I would hope that everybody embraces the idea of the marketplace of ideas. The proverbial street corner of the 21st century, where people can gather to debate issues is increasingly social media, which serves as a platform for public discourse,” he said.

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1 comment:

Thornton Crowe said...

With Obama running fast and free on the Constitution, all of the rights guaranteed within it are in peril. With Bernie's big socialist dream, they will be completely eradicated. This is a surprise, not.

People wake up. If you continue to do the same thing by putting special interest and unconstitutional puppets in the White House, you're going to lose everything that made Americans free. And as Reagan said in "A Time for Choosing" we're the last country whom enjoys true freedom.