It didn't happen overnight.
2016 U.S elections changed things a lot.
Spreading misinformation is not free speech.
2016 U.S elections changed things a lot.
Spreading misinformation is not free speech.
engaging in fraud is not speech. If I told you that I owned a hedge fund and would make you 10x returns, that's speech. If I take your money with the promise of 10x returns and enroll you in a scheme, that's an action.
If I gave you money based on that speech it would be hard to argue in court that you didn't engage in fraud. I'm not a lawyer, so I'll agree with you.
The action there is separate from the speech. I imagine for these disinformation type campaigns, the action is voting
As a recent example Alex Jones reversed his conspiracy theories on the threat of a lawsuit. Spreading misinformation comes with penalty.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandy_Hook_Elementary_School...
If I sell you a bar of lead painted gold, and tell you that it's solid gold, I can still be held responsible for fraud. My words would constitute a crime.
Now, if I told you explicitly that it was lead, but you decided to pay the gold price of your own free will, then I would be okay.
It would literally be the words I used to that constituted the crime. Lying isn't free speech in plenty on contexts. Go file a false police report and find out what happens.