Silenced OR Censored

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Is online silence and banning freedom of expression the same thing?

According to 2021 PEW Research, 85% Americans say that they are on the internet daily and 35% of U.S. adults say they are constantly online (https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2021/03/26/about-three-in-ten-u-s-adults-say-they-are-almost-constantly-online/). In 1996 the U.S. Government passed the Section 230 law which states "No provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider" (https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=(title:47%20section:230%20edition:prelim)). Some protections were granted to the public publisher and user to use the internet to express and speak without unlawful censorship. The rules of online censorship has been blurred due to the large array of subjective views of what is constitutional allowed to be said or expressed. Examples of this might be the ban of President Donald Trump on using Twitter to express his personal opinions while being viewed and read as a political figure. Trump basically coined the term "fake news" because of the presidents argument that specific news outlets both on paper and online were misleading or untrue based on the presidents own opinion.

After the George Floyd Black Lives Matters march and demonstrations according to 2020 PEW Research a majority of black men feel that they are being racially discriminated against in the public more because of a large amount of speech's and speaking out in the African American community. (https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2020/06/12/amid-protests-majorities-across-racial-and-ethnic-groups-express-support-for-the-black-lives-matter-movement/). With such tension that seems to be arising between races in the U.S. some individuals feel that they are being extradited by internet social media sites for their freedom of expression verses someone sharing their viewpoint of the opposite race.

It may be unconstitutional for the government to censor the freedoms outlined in the First Amendment but there are still unfavored acts of censorship from the past. There was the 1873 Comstock Law where it "made it illegal to send “obscene, lewd or lascivious,” “immoral,” or “indecent” publications through the mail. The law also made it a misdemeanor for anyone to sell, give away, or possess an obscene book, pamphlet, picture, drawing, or advertisement " (https://www.mtsu.edu/first-amendment/article/1038/comstock-act-of-1873). Anthony Comstock was not only a feminist's and womanizer but he was a proud individual for his aid in the suicide of 15 "smut-peddlers" after the act was passed (https://www.thoughtco.com/censorship-in-the-united-states-721221).

Fast forward to 2020 and the internet is an everyday tool in everyone's back pocket, Covid just hit and large protests are happening all over the country for the U.S. government to change the police departments role and the accountability of racial justice. Even though most individuals knew what was happening on the streets our president seem oblivious to the people's cries. "Trump has been widely criticized for his response to the protests, making incendiary comments in which he routinely has made little effort to distinguish protesters from “thugs” or “domestic terrorists” or written them offen masse as operatives of leftist anti-fascist groups despite little evidence that they played a major role in organizing the protests" (https://www.politico.com/news/2020/06/12/trump-george-floyd-protesters). More restrictions on private and public social media sites have impacted both freedom of expression on activists sides and freedom of speech on politicians sides due to the repercussions of actions not taken when words were silenced.

So here we are in 2021. Are you Silenced or are you Censored?