Is it time to revisit the concept of freedom of speech?

Is it time to revisit the concept of freedom of speech?

Since the inception of the United States, freedom of speech has been a bedrock American social norm, at least in concept if not always in practice (obviously through much of US history there was restrictions on freedom of speech for many groups, such as women and blacks). And one could argue this was a norm that worked reasonably well, and allowed for a reasonably productive, socially cohesive society.

One thing that we may only be appreciating in hindsight that seemed to make freedom of speech work as well as it did was that much communication was done through the media/press, which was a reasonably responsible, effective gatekeeper of what ideas got expressed and amplified, and which ones didn't.

In our current society with internet/social media and the seeming dissolution of the press as a gatekeeper of ideas, it seems that absolutely "freedom of speech" is a norm that we may need to readdress.

All the recent hate crime attacks, both domestic and international, that all seemed to be fueled in varying degrees by the free dissemination of bad ideas, seems to underscore this question.

At this point, I think this is a legitimate question that one could pose, whether there should be much higher restriction of speech, especially through internet/social media, and how this could logistically be accomplished in a socially responsible fashion.

28 April 2019 at 04:04 AM
Reply...