Japan Today

Here
and
Now

opinions

Musk's free speech absolutism 'a fantasy'

25 Comments
By Eric RANDOLPH

The requested article has expired, and is no longer available. Any related articles, and user comments are shown below.

© 2022 AFP

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.

25 Comments
Login to comment

Musk has made a lot of mistakes, but he has also done a lot of things right.

He started the company that I chose to have a solar panel system installed on our roof, with which we are very happy.

He started the Tesla car business, whose cars, here in California, seem to be everywhere.

His starlink satellite system was given free of charge to the Ukrainians at the start of Putin's war to conquer that country, and the Ukrainians themselves have credited the starlink system for enabling them to successfully survive in the war so far.

So, he embarrasses himself with the whole twitter business. I can put up with that.

-1 ( +4 / -5 )

"The problem is that Elon Musk has a half-baked free speech philosophy," said Jacob Mchangama.

This is just another way to say Musk simply have different standards based only on what he likes or not. If a speech is against what he believes then it can be censored, but if it goes along with his opinion then it should be protected. People tend to give too much importance to his opinions, even when they are too obviously grounded in nothing stable.

3 ( +7 / -4 )

Musk just proved free speech isn't absolute, only when the government is involved.

Private companies and individuals can dictate what and whos speech is heard on their property,

written in the constitution and declared so in the courts.

But youve got to admit the hypocrisy of Musk, declaring people should be heard unhindered, only to ban West a week later, attacking Jews isnt good for business, LOL

like I stated in my post last week, money talks, BS walks , thanks for confirming that Mr Musk

2 ( +6 / -4 )

I'm a free speech absolutist.

My fear with this case though is that West may have developed a serious mental problem. In which case he needs help, not a big platform for people to turn his (medical) delusions into $$$$ freak-show entertainment.

4 ( +6 / -2 )

In practice, this has meant gutting his team of moderators and reinstating controversial figures such as Donald Trump, who was banned for inciting violence with his false claims about election fraud.

This article is an opinion piece.

-8 ( +3 / -11 )

In practice, this has meant gutting his team of moderators and reinstating controversial figures such as Donald Trump, who was banned for inciting violence with his false claims about election fraud.

This article is an opinion piece.

The quote you chose is all established fact. Nothing to dispute.

45 was banned for ‘incitement to violence’.

musk reinstated his account then shortly after suspended another famous account for exactly the same reason.

musk fired half of twitter including a majority of the moderation staff.

45’s claims about election fraud have been consistently disproven, thus remain false.

Despite your opinion on these matters, these facts remain.

2 ( +7 / -5 )

I hope Musk gets what he wants and Twitter becomes a no-holds barred free speech zone.

It will be fun to see advertisers leave one by one, and sensible people abandon the platform for ones that have a more civilized base.

Let Twitter be the base for the racists, homophobes, misogynists, conspiracy theorists, and other assorted weirdos and idiots. The implosion will cost Musk billions, and I'll laugh and laugh and laugh.

-1 ( +6 / -7 )

"Some of the things (West) has said would arguably be punishable in court in Europe, especially in France."

Great--let France punish him.

Bob FosseToday  03:26 pm JST

In practice, this has meant gutting his team of moderators and reinstating controversial figures such as Donald Trump, who was banned for inciting violence with his false claims about election fraud.

The quote you chose is all established fact. Nothing to dispute.

Except the opinion of this article's author on controversial figures, false claims and election fraud.

-5 ( +1 / -6 )

The quote you chose is all established fact. Nothing to dispute.

Except the opinion of this article's author on controversial figures, false claims and election fraud.

It’s a lost cause for lost people.

Find something else to pin your hopes on.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

Remember when Trump became president, and a few months later we heard "who know healthcare could be so hard?"

You mean, besides everybody who actually knew what they were talking about?

It appears Musk is coming to that same realization with content moderation. Everything must be allowed... oh, except that. And that. Oh, and maybe that...

If he had bothered to ask anybody who actually knew what they were talking about, they could have saved him a lot of headaches.

Right-wingers take note - your simplistic evaluations of the world ignore that the real world is extremely nuanced, and it's why your reductionist policies and logic never stand up when applied to the real world. It took less than a month for Musk to start "infringing on your freedom of speech".

4 ( +4 / -0 )

I hope Musk gets what he wants and Twitter becomes a no-holds barred free speech zone.

He's run into the same problem every right-wing platform has run into - you either exercise your policy of "say whatever you want", or you get advertising money. So it becomes an issue of ideology vs. capitalism. If anyone has the money to ignore the capitalism in favor of the ideology, it's Musk. But the fact that he has already started reneging on his policy of anything goes, and is both banning accounts, and setting up an official shadowban policy, shows he's not willing to bankroll his ideology indefinitely.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Oops, this was supposed to be a quote:

I hope Musk gets what he wants and Twitter becomes a no-holds barred free speech zone.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

I agree, Kanye needs help. I doubt he will get it.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

quote: "The best way forward is to empower users to filter more of what they don't like rather than have governments or big tech make these decisions at a centralised level,"

Been saying that for ages. Individual and communal filters on a distributed system would work well. Folk would only see what they wanted to see.

There really should be adult and child (up to the age of majority, locally) versions of social media apps. Even the least competent and laziest parents could spot the adult one. That's better than all of us being treated like children and an Orwellian state acting as Big Brother, censoring us all.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

GBR48Today 03:43 am JST

Been saying that for ages. Individual and communal filters on a distributed system would work well. Folk would only see what they wanted to see.

Right, and since the people being demonized won't even see it, it won't hurt them at all. Is that the logic?

For example, homophobes and transphobes posting BS about "grooming" and other assorted lies won't affect actual LGBTQIA in the real world who have blocked those accounts.

Or conspiracy theorists posting their anti-vaxx nonsense where only other anti-vaxx can see it won't create problems in the real world when it comes to making sure all kids get vaccinated.

Because when PizzaGate erupted, only the people who saw the actual tweets themselves knew about it and were effected.

Is that what you think? Or is it that you just don't care? Or maybe you think this is how life is, and we should all just put up with all the hate and ignorance cause FREEDUM! Just wondering.

1 ( +3 / -2 )

He's run into the same problem every right-wing platform has run into - you either exercise your policy of "say whatever you want", or you get advertising money. So it becomes an issue of ideology vs. capitalism.

Seems like a double edge, sword, when you look at how the Democrats wielded the company and use it to silence, free-speech or in particular conservative free-speech, in order to tilt the scales of any election, or any dissent into any Democrat political opponent is something that needed to be known to the world, the fact that he is opening up the platform and allowing everybody to speak. It’s the way it should be, no one should be blindsided, no one should be barred from speaking, unless in the most extreme of measures, and everyone should be able to have a voice within reason and Democrats should not be the ones to hold the finger on the button and dictate to ask who gets to say what

If anyone has the money to ignore the capitalism in favor of the ideology, it's Musk.

That seems very unlikely

But the fact that he has already started reneging on his policy of anything goes, and is both banning accounts, and setting up an official shadowban policy, shows he's not willing to bankroll his ideology indefinitely.

now all of a sudden Liberals and Democrats are complaining, before Musk bought the company, it was always like “get your own platform and say what you want to say, don’t bother us, it’s a private company”. It’s a private owned company, the owners of Twitter can do whatever they want, well, the same thing applies here. Anyway, he’s just getting started, and let’s see where it goes from here.

-3 ( +0 / -3 )

when you look at how the Democrats wielded the company and use it to silence, free-speech or in particular conservative free-speech

Oh dear, you don't know what freedom of speech is, as the above quote is delusion. Who was twitter having prosecuted for their tweets? Because without prosecution by government, there was no infringement on freedom of speech.

now all of a sudden Liberals and Democrats are complaining, before Musk bought the company, it was always like “get your own platform and say what you want to say, don’t bother us, it’s a private company”

I still feel that way. And Musk has only proven why extremist right-wing platforms cannot be successful, they can either choose ideology, or capitalism, but the two are fundamentally opposed. The average person has no interest in being on a far-right platform where any speech goes, and as such, mainstream advertisers will not want their brand associated with that.

Does Mike Lindell have enough advertising money to keep Twitter going? I think not. There just aren't enough far-right advertisers to keep a platform the size of Twitter running. Remember, Twitter was running in the red BEFORE Musk drove off over half of the top advertisers. He's got $1 billion just in interest payments yearly, and that ignores advertising costs. Where is he going to get this money from?

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Oh dear, you don't know what freedom of speech is, as the above quote is delusion.

Rhetorical question?

Who was twitter having prosecuted for their tweets? Because without prosecution by government, there was no infringement on freedom of speech.

Hmmm…not according to what Musk has been finding out.

I still feel that way. And Musk has only proven why extremist right-wing platforms cannot be successful,

The same way liberals in talk radio aren’t.

Anyway, they’re not trying to be anything other than wanting to be able to have the same freedom of speech like they used to before the progressive and woke culture stopped that.

they can either choose ideology, or capitalism, but the two are fundamentally opposed. The average person has no interest in being on a far-right platform where any speech goes, and as such, mainstream advertisers will not want their brand associated with that.

Yes, that’s one opinion, maybe that’s why the left are so unsuccessful in TV news realm. This is going by the same analogy.

Does Mike Lindell have enough advertising money to keep Twitter going? I think not. There just aren't enough far-right advertisers to keep a platform the size of Twitter running.

Twitter was the least profitable company out there. And now we know that it was pretty much transformed over the years and a central control mouthpiece for the Democrat party. Musk realized this and brought (and still bringing out all of this crazy, but suspected underhanded and illegal tactics they used along with various intelligence groups to squash any opposition to this administration. Now that this has finally been confirmed and Musk is shining a light on all of this, this will help clean out the platform, start a premium membership and make the company profitable to its shareholders and to allow and give everyone the equal right to use this platform to have robust debates whether you agree or disagree. It’s all part of the overall discourse.

Remember, Twitter was running in the red BEFORE Musk drove off over half of the top advertisers. He's got $1 billion just in interest payments yearly, and that ignores advertising costs. Where is he going to get this money from?

We shall see. Will he be successful, no one knows, but I think this is definitely a good start, let’s see how it unfolds.

https://www.theonion.com/most-brilliant-ways-elon-musk-plans-to-make-twitter-pro-1849744458

-2 ( +0 / -2 )

Rhetorical question?

Neither rhetorical, nor a question.

Hmmm…not according to what Musk has been finding out.

No.

Let's actually stick with what I said, and discussing things that really happened, mmkay?

Oh dear, you don't know what freedom of speech is, as the above quote is delusion. Who was twitter having prosecuted for their tweets? Because without prosecution by government, there was no infringement on freedom of speech.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Neither rhetorical, nor a question. 

It didn’t seem so

.

No.

Let's actually stick with what I said, and discussing things that really happened, mmkay?

I’m doing just that.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

We shall see. Will he be successful, no one knows, but I think this is definitely a good start, let’s see how it unfolds.

https://www.theonion.com/most-brilliant-ways-elon-musk-plans-to-make-twitter-pro-1849744458

What’s the point in citing a satirical website?

0 ( +1 / -1 )

What’s the point in citing a satirical website?

Haha! I believe they call that "scoring an own-goal"

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Let Twitter be the base for the racists, homophobes, misogynists, conspiracy theorists, and other assorted weirdos and idiots.

Some people would fit RIGHT in!

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Login to leave a comment

Facebook users

Use your Facebook account to login or register with JapanToday. By doing so, you will also receive an email inviting you to receive our news alerts.

Facebook Connect

Login with your JapanToday account

User registration

Articles, Offers & Useful Resources

A mix of what's trending on our other sites