You discount the damage trolls like Rogan et al did to the tolerance needed to make free speech a possibility.
We have these media trolls just spewing provocative nonsense, finding any open wound in our discourse and throw salt on it so they can have their lols, dollars, and influence. How can you be surprise when free speech is finding it's boundaries.
This is not even a partisan thing, I do believe exploitative media that feeds on strife is very good business and thus it finds its audience, whether it's left or right. Catering to the different psychologies and fears while maximizing profits.
Re:Spotify deletes 70 Joe Rogan episodes
by firmnoodle on Saturday February 05, 2022 @12:27PM
(#30223400)
This is exactly my concern for today's content and it puts us in a place where future content is at risk. Removing select episodes of sitcoms because they aren't politically correct means current shows self censor before creation. Removing back episodes of podcasts can cause a chilling effect on newer content and new creators. There is additional concern when the government is encouraging private companies to silence content. We need to decide if we want to live in a monoculture of thought pushed down from the political leaders or if we want to live in a diverse culture of thoughts and ideas pushed up from the individuals.
This is a larger cultural question and will determine where we go from here.
Are we still a society that values free expression and open debate?