TOBY SHAPSHAK: Social networks should support fact over falsehood
Conspiracy theories and other untruths have no place on the internet. Social networks should defend real freedom of speech
An interesting debate about free speech is unfolding over the notorious right-wing internet troll Alex Jones and his Infowars conspiracy channel. He and his site have been banned by Facebook, Apple and YouTube — but, controversially, not by Twitter. Jones is a divisive figure. He is loved by a large clique of right-wingers who believe what he spouts. But it is patent nonsense for anyone who reads and watches the news. In the past few months, Jones’s factually untrue ranting has become the epicentre of a debate about freedom of speech on social media. Free speech should be protected, goes the mantra most right-thinking people agree on, often citing the famous quote attributed to Voltaire: "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." (This quote is itself controversial. Some dispute whether he said it or whether it was said about him.) But what happens if free speech is inflammatory, or just plain wrong? That’s the problem with Infowars — the in...
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