Is Censorship Realistic?
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Recently I have been thinking about the fact that not all countries have the same ideals as America when it comes to censorship and free speech. This is evident in the turmoil happening in Egypt recently, with the government attempting to completely shut down the internet to prevent word getting out of the goings on in the country.
This got me thinking about whether or not censorship of journalism is realistic in our society today. With social media sites like Twitter and Facebook, people can update their status or tweet without even needing a computer: they can simply text.
Also, anonymity is another issue that makes censorship nearly impossible. With the ability for people to make Twitter accounts or blogs under pseudonyms or fake names it is nearly impossible for, say, the Egyptian to report or censor all journalists.
There are many people on social media sites that are even encouraging this rebellion.
It seems that these days people are intent on knowing as much information as the possibly can, even sometimes at the expense of laws or respect of the government.
What is your opinion? Do you think that we should be able to have access to all information, even if it goes against the government? Do you think that the journalists in Egypt are right for getting the word out? Do you think censorship still exists, or is it only theory?
Photo Credit: prisonplanet.com via creativecommon.org
4 comments:
I've been of the opinion that censorship is impossible for a long time. Without fail, if you try to censor something the word will get out and public interest in the matter will be raised. Good luck censoring it after that.
Censorship has always been an issue in journalism. For me, censorship is a symbol of dictatorship. There are several examples in history of censorship, like the Nazi's or in Russia during The Cold War. This kind of censorship, far from protecting the individual, will instead force him to revolt.
I was intrigued and incensed by your mention of a lack of "respect of the governnment" in regard to censorship. Yes, as American citizens, disrespecting the government in print and through social media is our right under the First Amendment. It is something that we cherish, and for a very good reason. I would love to see it applied internationally. I think having access to information that the government may not necessarily want us to have access to can be a very good thing-- perhaps we don't recognize it as such because we have the benefit of living under the first amendment. In my opinion, transparency is a very, very good thing.
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