Mail Online

Will the web censor tank critics?

ELSEWHERE in this newspaper I discuss the extraordinary discoveries by the excellent Big Brother Watch (BBW) organisation, showing what looks very much like British Government involvement in policing opinion during the Great British Covid Mistake.

I’m pretty sure that the big internet companies did not stand up very bravely for free speech when this happened. These things are well-hidden and I suspect that BBW’s boss, Silkie Carlo, has discovered only a tiny part of what went on.

There are two issues here. The first is whether speech should be free at all at such times, which in my view it absolutely should. If your policy is wrong, which it was, how will you find out if you forbid debate? The second is direct government involvement. In Britain, I think the state crossed a dangerous line during Covid and I believe it has not retreated.

This week, there’s an even more important issue, the future of the planet. Those of us who are deeply worried by the decision to send tanks – such as the British Challenger 2, pictured – to Ukraine should be watching carefully to see whether our opinions get a fair hearing, especially on the internet.

Readers of The Mail on Sunday, which believes profoundly in free speech, are lucky. They get to hear both sides. But in the wider world of the web, are dissenting voices heard? Or is there no sound except the grinding of tank engines and shouts for more war?

Happy Valley: The Finale

en-gb

2023-01-29T08:00:00.0000000Z

2023-01-29T08:00:00.0000000Z

https://mailonline.pressreader.com/article/282071986038773

dmg media (UK)