Trump Administration Wields Fear to Choke Free Speech

Young Americans are quietly seething over the Trump administration, but a culture of fear is keeping them from speaking out - a phenomenon known as the chilling effect, where self-censorship and restraint take hold to avoid backlash. This eerie silence on college campuses is a direct result of the administration's relentless crackdown on free…

https://osintsights.com/trump-administration-wields-fear-to-choke-free-speech?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=social

#FreeSpeech #Censorship #ChillingEffect #CampusSpeech #FirstAmendment

RE: https://social.bund.de/@Bundesregierung/116448306296455452

Die Speicherung von Kommunikationsdaten sind nicht der richtige Schritt zur Sicherstellung von Spuren im Netz. Hier waren wir mit dem sog. #QuickFreeze bereits weiter.

Die Ausklammerung der Inhalte und Standortdaten ist für jede:n Erfahrene:n in Aufklärung ein Witz: #Metadaten sind die eigentlich wichtige Information.

Wir riskieren mit diesem Vorgehen den Schutz von #Whistleblower:innen und anderen Menschen, die sensible Informationen übertragen. #ChillingEffect

"A Redditor Criticized #ICE. #Trump Is Trying to Unmask Them by Dragging the Company to a Secret Grand Jury."
https://archive.is/ckM2Z

PS: If the Trump admin can do this to #Reddit, it can do it to any social-media, blogging, newsletter, or publishing platform.

My guess is that it's starting with Reddit because Reddit users are anonymous. If the Trump admin wants the names of its critics on other platforms (if?), it already has a huge number of them.

#Anonymity #Censorship #ChillingEffect #FirstAmendment #Intimidation #USLaw #USPol #USPolitics

U. S. HELSINKI COMMISSION: Criminal Defamation and “Insult” Laws: A Summary of Free Speech Developments in the Czech Republic
Wednesday, January 9, 2002,
https://www.csce.gov/articles/criminal-defamation-and-insult-laws-summary-free-speech-developments-czech/ :

"when insult and criminal defamation laws are used, they are most often used to punish mere criticism of government policies or public officials, to stifle political discussion, and to squelch news and discussion that governments would rather avoid" -- "Some politicians resort to criminal defamation charges as a means of silencing their critics" -- "the threat of imprisonment, the cost associated with defending oneself in a criminal trial, and restrictions associated with a suspended sentence [...] all serve to chill free speech and the public debate necessary for a vibrant democracy." -- "There are also a number of laws that are not, per se, contrary to international norms but which may be used in ways that are inconsistent with the Czech Republic’s international commitments to free speech." -- "laws are being used in ways that are not compatible with international free speech norms." -- "Criminal defamation and “insult” laws [...] are not, however, consistent with OSCE norms and their use constitutes an infringement on the fundamental right to free speech." -- "Numerous non-governmental organizations have taken strong positions against criminal defamation and insult laws. These include Amnesty International; Article 19; the Committee to Protect Journalists; national Helsinki Committees such as the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee, Croatian Helsinki Committee, Greek Helsinki Committee, Romanian Helsinki Committee and Slovak Helsinki Committee; the International Helsinki Federation; The World Press Freedom Committee; Norwegian Forum for Freedom of Expression; national chapters of PEN; and Reporters Sans Frontières."

#freedomofexpression #freespeech #czech #czechia #czechrepublic #czechregime #regime #eu #euregime #chillingeffect #censorship #authoritarianism #dictatorship #authoritarian