Freedom of Speech Must be Inviolate

Israeli businessman Shlomo Kramer recently called upon governments to take control of all social media platforms. Such a measure is needed, he claimed, to stop “polarization” and prevent the spread of lies. “We need to stack,” he explained, “rank the authenticity of every person that expresses themselves online and take control over what they are saying, based on that ranking.” He added, “And we need to educate people against lies.”

Kramer’s concern about the ease with which misinformation and disinformation can be spread on social media is a valid concern. And educating people to discern truth from fiction is desirable. However, the solution isn’t controlling what people can say and allowing government officials to be the arbiters of truth.

Government officials are neither omniscient nor immune to political pressures. They make errors, and they often make decisions based on their political beliefs. To believe that government censors will be impartial and objective is intellectually dishonest.

Kramer claimed that “it’s time to limit the First Amendment in order to protect it.” To argue for an exception to a principle is to reject that principle. To limit the First Amendment is to reject the principle of free speech. If we allow limits to free speech on social media today, we will see limits on free speech in newspapers, television, books, and every other form of expression tomorrow.

The First Amendment protects our freedom to express ideas that are not popular. It protects our freedom to express ideas that others may call lies. Freedom of speech enables us to express ideas without reprisal or restrictions from the government.

The solution to disinformation and misinformation isn’t censorship. The solution is the truth, and for the truth to be be expressed, freedom of speech must be inviolate.