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Editor’s note: This essay originally appeared on the author’s blog, Res ipsa loquitur – The thing itself speaks.
As a longstanding advocate for free speech, the past few years have been disheartening and concerning.
The government’s censorship efforts are unfortunately not new, but what is new is the media and Democratic Party’s support for such censorship. This was evident on various channels following a recent opinion that found the Biden administration guilty of violating the First Amendment in “the most massive attack against free speech in United States history.”
However, no one expressed this more simply and chillingly than CNN Chief White House Correspondent Phil Mattingly, who stated that it “makes sense” for tech companies to comply with government censorship demands.
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Mattingly acknowledged that social media platforms mostly gave in to the Biden administration’s censorship demands. However, he argued that it “makes sense” and is “probably what we should do on public health grounds.”
“During the early stages of their COVID response, the Biden administration would frequently contact Twitter, Facebook, and other companies to address accounts spreading lies and misinformation about vaccines. The companies often responded by taking action, which, when explained to me at the time, made sense and seemed like the appropriate response from a public health perspective.”
What is concerning is not only the blind acceptance of government protection from harmless thoughts but also the failure to recognize that the government was wrong on many of these points while experts who questioned the official position were banned and blacklisted.
Multiple individuals were routinely censored on Twitter and other platforms for daring to challenge the official stance on masks.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) initially rejected the use of mask mandates. However, the issue became politicized as politicians and the press claimed that questioning masks went against science and reason. In April 2020, the CDC changed its position and advocated for the masking of the entire population, including young children. The mask mandates and other pandemic measures, like school closures, are now being associated with emotional and developmental issues in children.
The necessity of school and business closures was also questioned by some critics who were subsequently censored. It now appears that they may have been right, as many countries did not close schools and did not experience significant COVID outbreaks. However, we are now witnessing alarming drops in educational achievement and rising rates of medical illnesses among the youth.
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Masks became a major dividing line in politics and the media. Maskless individuals faced public shaming and were even denounced in Congress. The then-CDC Director, Dr. Robert Redfield, stated during a Senate hearing that “face masks are the most important powerful health tool we have.”
However, there are now several studies suggesting that widespread masking may have had little to no effect in curbing COVID transmission. These studies also indicate that wearing better masks, such as N95/P2 respirators, may not significantly reduce the risk of catching the flu or respiratory illnesses.
It is important to engage in ongoing debates and discussions about these studies. However, the point remains that there were conflicting indicators regarding mask efficacy and legitimate reasons to question the mandates. Yet, due to the censorship supported by many Democratic leaders on social media, the opportunity for real debate was suppressed, and questioning such mandates was characterized as a threat to public health.
The head of the World Health Organization even endorsed censorship to combat what he referred to as an “infodemic.”
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Doctors like Bhattacharya and Gupta faced backlash for challenging the status quo and advocating for a more targeted COVID response. They were co-authors of the Great Barrington Declaration, which called for a focus on the most vulnerable populations rather than widespread lockdowns and mandates. Many are now questioning the effectiveness and costs of the extensive lockdowns, as well as the value of masks and the dismissal of natural immunity as an alternative to vaccination. Yet, a year ago, these experts and others were attacked and censored on social media for expressing such views. The media has quietly acknowledged scientific evidence challenging mask efficacy and school closures without addressing their previous role in attacking dissenting voices. Even discussing the lab theory regarding the origin of COVID-19, a theory now considered plausible, was once labeled a conspiracy theory. The science and health reporter for the New York Times, Apoorva Mandavilli, even denounced the theory as “racist.”
Yet, Mattingly and others now defend censorship by simply stating that the government should censor ideas because some ideas must be censored. History has shown that governments have always justified censorship by claiming it is in the public’s best interest. They have consistently defined certain views as harmful or false.
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However, what is alarming now is that prominent media figures are disregarding concerns about censorship and suggesting that obedience to government censorship should be the default stance.
After all, it is all for our own protection. Censorship just “makes sense.”
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