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This is a post in response to @joshweertman's question, “How did online censorship change how you think and act on the internet?”
For the most part, I have been fairly oblivious to online censorship since my social media journey has begun. However, since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, my awareness has been elevated. In the wake of spring 2020, truth and lies began to blur together, making the global emergency more about politics than public health. I remember back in the summer of 2020, the first time that I saw a post covered up by “This page has repeatedly shared false information.” Although this may be beneficial in reminding the public to critically think about what they read on the internet and not take it for face value, it may still be advancing the biases of those who “censor” it. This idea makes me upset because there are a lot of viewpoints that may not be shared because of the automated robots that choose to block content that has been flagged. This concept is rather unnatural, compared to in-person interactions where we can share opinions and thoughts as we choose.
As for how online censorship has changed how I interact on the internet, if there is a post or account that has been blocked on a social media platform (Facebook/Twitter), I always try to research the topic on an outside search engine and decide for myself whether to believe it or not. As a society, we all have more access to information and opinions than we ever have, and I believe that it is our responsibility to research current events and use that to develop our opinions. Just because a topic or post was hidden, does not mean that individuals should ignore the topic and complain that it was unviewable. If an individual has the resources to access social media and news platforms, they have the resources to research hidden information. Like they say, “ignorance is bliss,” don’t be that guy.
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