UK Minister Calls for Jailing Social Media Bosses Who Do Not Censor Speech
By Jonathan Turley
April 22, 2023:
Information Clearing House
-- As previously
discussed, after Musk decided to buy Twitter,
Hillary Clinton called upon European countries
to force social media companies to censor
Americans. The European Union quickly responded
by threatening
Musk and other executives. Now, Technology
and Science Secretary
Michelle Donelan has announced plans to jail
social media executives if they fail to censor
so-called “harmful” content on their websites.
The government, of course, will determine what
is deemed too harmful for citizens to see or
hear.
Donelan is seeking speech arrests under the
UK’s Online Safety Bill, a draconian censorship
bill that would effectively ban end-to-end
encryption for private internet users.
The bill uses Britain’s broadcasting
regulator Ofcom to censor “all forms of
expression which spread, incite, promote or
justify hatred” based on various progressive
characteristics, including transgenderism. So
the government can censor anyone who it views as
promoting or justifying hatred against virtually
any group. Those who do not censor can now be
rounded up by Donelan and her minions.
According to a report by The Telegraph,
companies will also face fines of up to 10 per
cent of their global revenue should they dare to
ignore Britain’s demands to preemptively delete
or obscure posts violating its coming censorship
regime.
The decline of free speech in the United
Kingdom has long been a concern for free speech
advocates. A man was convicted
for sending a tweet while drunk referring to
dead soldiers. Another was arrested for an anti-police
t-shirt. Another was arrested for calling
the Irish boyfriend of his ex-girlfriend a
“leprechaun.” Yet another was arrested for singing
“Kung Fu Fighting.” A teenager was arrested
for protesting
outside of a Scientology center with a sign
calling the religion a “cult.”
Recently we discussed the
arrest of a woman who was praying to herself
near an abortion clinic. English courts have
seen criminalized
“toxic ideologies” as part of this crackdown
on free speech.
Donelan is only the latest voice of a rising
generation of censors. These officials proudly
parade their intent to silence or jail those
with dissenting views. Yet, they do so in the
name of tolerance. This is why free speech is in
a free fall in Europe and why we must remain
vigilant in this country to resist figures like
Clinton who want to bring European censorship to
our shores.
Jonathan Turley is an American attorney,
legal scholar, writer, commentator, and legal
analyst in broadcast and print journalism. A
professor at George Washington University Law
School, he has testified in United States
Congressional proceedings about constitutional
and statutory issues
Views expressed in this article are
solely those of the author and do not necessarily
reflect the opinions of Information Clearing House.
in this article are
solely those of the author and do not necessarily
reflect the opinions of Information Clearing House.
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