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Comment by zombieprocesses | Hacker News Reader

Good old "civility". The excuse that tyrants, dictators, liberals, conservatives and social media tycoons use to justify censorship.

Surprised the other excuse ( "won't you please think of the children" ) wasn't used.

Can't wait for the next wave of censorship. ISPs banning twitter, news and pornography to increase "health and civility".

The promise of open and free internet is quickly turning into a nightmare of censored social media.

Is anyone else concerned that twitter and social media are now openly stating that they will manipulate content/people to fit their agenda?

If it was china doing this, HN and the media would be attacking it from every angle possible. Strangely, the same type of behavior in the US is supported by these same people.

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>If it was china doing this, HN and the media would be attacking it from every angle possible. Strangely, the same type of behavior in the US is supported by these same people.

Because, unlike with China, the US government isn't using its monopoly on violence to force Twitter to make these decisions, or arresting those who fail to comply. It's not even remotely the same thing.

Is anyone else concerned that twitter and social media are now openly stating that they will manipulate content/people to fit their agenda?

Not really, based on what Jack is saying here, and Facebook's stance of "stop promoting third party posts and promote friends' posts more[0]".

A lot of what we see on social media now - slews of paid ads and suggestions based on easily gamed algorithms - are tools of other peoples' agendas... Do you think you're really in control of your social media feeds?

0 - https://www.vox.com/2018/1/12/16882536/facebook-news-feed-ch...

> Not really, based on what Jack is saying here, and Facebook's stance of "stop promoting third party posts and promote friends' posts more[0]".

Facebook saying that is just a way of saying “Make people using Facebook for advertising purposes pay more to reach the audience”, which is what Facebook makes changes to do frequently, usually with the same explanation and no real change in the amount of non-friend content (just the non-friends reaching you are more heavily tilted to those paying more for paid reach, i.e., ads that don't get distinguished from organic content.)

What is "censorship"? When I learned about the concept, I learned the definition that "censorship" is to block a person's speech in a purely public space. You seem to be alluding to a more abstract right than this.

> What is "censorship"? When I learned about the concept, I learned the definition that "censorship" is to block a person's speech in a purely public space. You seem to be alluding to a more abstract right than this.

Censorship is just limiting/preventing speech. It can be by government, private organizations or even individuals. Governments can censor. Companies can censor. Your parents can censor.

Historically, since governments have been the most powerful institutions and our focus was primarily on preventing government censorship.

Censorship by private organizations and private individuals is legal ( including self-censorship ). Censorship by government is generally illegal in the US.

But that doesn't mean twitter can't censor. They can and they do censor. It's just that it is legal and their right to censor.

Hope that clears up any confusion on censorship.

But here's a thought, as corporations get more and more powerful ( even more powerful than many governments around the world ), should we as a society think about protecting citizens from corporate censorship?

We should think about why we allow corporations to be that powerful. If they're powerful enough to meaningfully censor society, then they should no longer be private entities.

> If it was china doing this, HN and the media would be attacking it from every angle possible.

Yes, people see a difference between private parties exercising freedom of the press and the government regulating what can be published in a medium.

Dude. I dont think you really have anything to worry about. 4chan is still around. Other platforms which enable hate speech and shit posting will pop up to fill the void. The internet is anarchic. Quit your complaining.

It doesn't help me to post on 4chan if the people I want to attack aren't there.

> Is anyone else concerned that twitter and social media are now openly stating that they will manipulate content/people to fit their agenda?

All advertising-supported platforms exist to make money off someone manipulating the user for an agenda, so I'm not sure why it would be more concerning for the outlet itself to have an overt agenda.

The promise of open and free internet is quickly turning into a nightmare of censored social media.

Stop. None of this is happening. If you want to start a website where people can have garbage discussions, nothing is stopping you. Feel free to take action if you believe the cause is important.

I already think we have Voat for garbage discussions. One such site is more than enough.

You don't have to ban it. It will kill itself. People will realize how toxic it is, how bad it makes them feel and there will be a time when social will "fall apart". Then after a couple of years it will make a comeback and the cycle will start again with a new Facebook, a new Twitter and a new Instagram.

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