Introduction
Freedom of speech is considered a fundamental human right that reinforces other rights, thus letting society as a whole progress and develop. Censorship refers to the process of editing, suppressing, or removing objectionable information from the message being delivered. In politics, censorship has been a particularly sensitive subject as it has been linked to the coercive control of various media outlets with the purpose of shaping the political views of message recipients. For example, regardless of party affiliation, most Americans think that social media outlets censor political viewpoints (Vogels et al.). Thus, censorship imposes significant limits on freedom of speech, allowing to indirectly promote the views of the message imposer, and in the political sphere, it can be particularly damaging to expression.
Recent Issues
One of the most prominent examples of censoring political speech is associated with the social media presence of the former President of the United States, Donald Trump. In January 2021, online platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, Google, and Pinterest made an announcement that they would no longer post Trump’s speech on their sites (Eidelman and Ruane). Because a large group of the audience considered his speech hateful and outrageous, they were pleased with such a decision and praised the media decision-makers for such a step.
What many still need to recognize is that despite the negative tone and implications of Trump’s posts on social media, his statements fall under the category of free speech and are protected by the First Amendment. Thus, the few media companies that have enough political power and leverage can effectively silence individuals whose informational agenda does not align with theirs.
The matter of political censorship is complicated because the government attempted to oppose it, although in ways that have been shown to be unconstitutional. For instance, in Florida, a new law was enacted banning online platforms from blocking or suspending the accounts of any candidate for political office. The law forced social media to publish anything candidates wrote, whether or not protected by the First Amendment or was in violation of community standards. Such a law was unconstitutional as the government cannot force platforms to mandatorily carry specific speech, even though large platforms should not engage in political censorship, either.
Role of Social Media
Large social media platforms remain central stakeholders in the public’s ability to express themselves and hear the speech of others online. When they block the accounts of Presidents, including when they are in office, they significantly limit the reach of their message. For the largest three companies, Facebook, Twitter, and Google, their choice of whether or not they will publish certain speeches of political candidates is protected by the First Amendment (Hudson).
Nevertheless, they must preserve as much political speech as possible without censoring it to provide the audience with a well-rounded perspective on each issue being discussed. In this case, the idea of balance is crucial – it is the responsibility of large platforms to maintain unbiased toward political speech of any kind while also controlling the content they publish in accordance with guidelines. In a democratic society, a balance must be maintained between good censorship freedom of speech, and the right of citizens to access information freely.
Conclusion
To conclude, the problem with censoring political speech online lies in the restriction of messages that are considered unwanted by some but valued by others. In a democracy, this mechanism must be used solely to edit harmful information and not to retain power or infringe on any population group. Only in this case justice and equality are possible in the state, which are essential elements for every person.
Works Cited
Eidelman, Vera, and Kate Ruane. “The Problem with Censoring Political Speech Online – Including Trump’s.” ACLU. 2021. Web.
Hudson, David. “Government Use of Social Media.” MTSU. Web.
Vogels, Emily, et al. “Most Americans Think Social Media Sites Censor Political Viewpoints.” Pew Research Center. 2020. Web.