Monday, April 5, 2021

Blog Post #4

Twitter's Suspending of Users

     For this prompt, I referred to the recent news of Twitter and Snapchat suspending Trump from their platforms due to his social media posts. The FA allows for Freedom of Speech, so that anyone can say whatever they want, provided that it does not risk serious harm to others. This is one of the most important freedoms of the United States--the freedom to speak out your opinions and give a voice to your thoughts. However, the FA does not condone hate speech or speech that incites violence, as this can potentially hurt other people.  


This is particularly relevant to private companies, who can dictate their freedoms according to their own desires. In the case of Twitter and Snapchat, they decided that Trump's language violated their speech policies, and he was therefore suspended from their platforms. Private companies are allowed to do this because their platforms are individually-run, without government interference. Therefore, Twitter and Snapchat are not violating Trump's FA rights to free speech. Rather, they are utilizing their own rights to decide who can say what on their respective platforms. 

If people feel censored online, they can view the policies of their social media site or platform to view what their rules and guidelines are. Typically, sites can choose what is said on their pages, and they can remove a post or user if they feel that there is a violation. Unjust censoring should be challenged, however, as it's important to stand up for one's rights and for freedom of speech.


Sources: https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/08/tech/trump-twitter-ban/index.html


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