Free Speech Absolutist Elon Musk Pulls Down Documentary About India PM Modi
from the who-is-the-streisand-of-bollywood? dept
Who is the Barbra Streisand of Bollywood? There’s a new documentary, produced by the BBC about India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Modi. Specifically, the documentary is focused on Modi’s relationship with India’s Muslim community, including his apparent role during some anti-Muslim riots (where over 1,000 people were killed) two decades ago. And, apparently, it doesn’t make Modi look very good. I know this because India has banned the documentary. And is also demanding that clips of the documentary be removed from the internet.
And Twitter (and YouTube) have complied.
The two-part documentary “India: The Modi Question” has not been broadcast in India by the BBC, but India’s federal government blocked it over the weekend and banned people from sharing clips on social media, citing emergency powers under its information technology laws. Twitter and YouTube complied with the request and removed many links to the documentary.
Of course, doing so seems to only be drawing more attention to the documentary.
The ban has only brought more attention to the program, with many people, including opposition politicians, protesting the move and providing links to download it.
There really should be a term for that sorta thing.
Anyway, this is why we mocked Elon’s professed “free speech absolutism” when he made claims about how his view of free speech was that it meant “that which matches the law.”
Except, that’s not supporting free speech. It’s supporting free speech suppression by governments. Indeed, as we pointed out (and were mocked for by Musk’s very vocal fans for), Twitter actually has a pretty long history of fighting back against government censorship in that country. Indeed, Musk whined about Twitter’s actions to fight for free speech in India.
If you believe in free speech, that means standing up against government censorship. Not bowing down to it. That’s not free speech at all. (And yes, YouTube should also not cave to this kind of nonsense, but YouTube hasn’t been running around taking as strong a “moral” stance as Musk has).
Either way, students in India are actually showing Musk and YouTube what fighting for free speech looks like as they’re refusing to back down:
“They will shut one screen, and we will open hundreds,” said Aishe Ghosh, one of the student activists who attended.
The Indian government is now arresting students for trying to screen the documentary, showing way more support and commitment to actual free speech than Elon Musk ever has.
Filed Under: censorship, documentary, free speech, india, narendra modi
Companies: twitter, youtube
Comments on “Free Speech Absolutist Elon Musk Pulls Down Documentary About India PM Modi”
Thank you, Elon for being the upholder of the free speech of dictators, thin-skinned inheritors of blood emerald mines, and other odious threats to humanity everywhere.
My life has substantially improved since I dumped Twitter and Facebook.
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The articles sounded like it was a block on India’s Twitter, which is a perfect exampe of why domestic data networks are a modern addition to the Internet.
Mind your own fucking business should not have to be said.
Just about every security article is nulled by new infrastructure in the 21st century. All of the disposible hardware on TCP/IP is a security flaw already. Just like plastic trash in the ocean. It already happened (India dumps a lot of trash in the ocean as part of their culture).
Well that's awkward...
Gotta love the contrast with the Twitter Files ‘scandal’. There the government merely notifying the platform of potential TOS violations was spun as a heinous attack on free speech, and yet now Twitter is folding like wet cardboard and taking down speech at a government’s behest.
Given the difference in response it would seem that if the FBI had actually ordered accounts to be pulled that would have been the proper response and spiked that part of the ‘scandal’ since after all it’s not like a platform can or should fight back against such demands, so I guess from now on the FBI or other government agencies shouldn’t nudge Twitter in the direction of TOS violations they should just tell Twitter to pull any account they don’t like and that’ll nicely solve the problem.
By Freeze Peach I simply mean that which matches what I wanted.
FREE: As in free to do what I want, screw everyone else.
Funny how some are trying to walk back their more insane stuff. And MTG has matured – LMAO.
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Misleading
Mike, the rest of your pieces on Elon’s shenanigans have been fantastic, but this title is a bit misleading. It implies that Musk himself was the one that pulled the trigger on pulling this documentary. In actuality, Musk was unaware of what had transpired: https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1618319479662055426 It’s his LACK of action (assuming nothing changes) that should be condemned.
Now, of course, what matters here is what actions Elon will take as a result? Is he going to continue to masquerade as a free-speech absolutist, or will he actually apply his principles and fight back against government censorship?
Re:
I don’t think it’s misleading. The point I’ve raised is that the old Twitter had an entire focus, so that the entire team knew how to deal with requests like this. The new Twitter has… Elon. And apparently if he’s busy, shit gets censored.
Not a great situation at all.
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Re: Re:
More like a great deal of that apparatus (too much) is still in place and responding to these sorts of things as Musk would like.
Obviously, he did not fire enough people.
Re: Re: Re:
Frankly Musk should have fired more people, if only to demonstrate Musk has no idea what he’s doing and piss off enough people that they throw him out for all the damage he’s done.
Re:
He fired the people who used to handle this, but it’s not his responsibility? I think it is.
Re:
He’s unaware of twitter’s moderation decisions as he has businesses to run, yet can leap into action at a moments notice to give Catturd a pat on the head, punish those who hurt the feelings of Libs of Tiktok, ban leftist groups at the request of Andy Ngo, fire twitter employees for even mild criticism of his handling of the company… Yeah, I don’t buy it. It’s selective myopia as he won’t just come out and admit he has zero problems with censorship when it benefits him.
Re: Re:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/other/a-leaked-internal-message-appears-to-show-elon-musk-ordered-twitter-staff-to-suspend-a-left-wing-activist-s-account/ar-AA16NS0X?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=f468f8fa0e7544e098c70ac94e75aab9
And now evidence is being leaked that Mr. ‘I’m too busy running businesses to be involved in moderation’ Musk has been directly ordering the bans of particular users for political reasons. Wonder why this wasn’t in the Twitter files?
religious speech
Anyone remember the old days and Who said you could say What??
Between the Puritans and the pope, what a confusing mess.
Now we have 40+ christian beliefs, not counting all the rest of the Muslim and others along with it. then those that Dont subscribe to those ideals.
But shame on you, if you live in one of those areas, Where 1 religion Dominates over all the rest. “we are right, you are wrong”, attitudes. And Im not even talking about a government.
What happens if we add Government trying to control Speech?
Freedom of speech is a mine field for those that disagree with you, and if they have money and power? Nuff said.
Re: Nobody expects the Venetian Inquisition!
…especially when you realize that they’re nominally the same organization as the Spanish one.
But the VI weren’t ideologues trying to stamp every heresy out either so maybe that’s why.
Truth is, even before the Reformation there were many Christian beliefs whose only common ground was the Pope three nation-states over and what was he gonna do? Which goes a long way explaining why pre-1900s Europe was bloodier than the 20th century Middle East.
wait, so twitter does have a communications department? how’d that happen?
Re:
Nobody remembered he was there, so he didn’t get put on the layoff list.
Re: Re:
I thought Elon fired that department.
I guess SOMEONE from that department still exists!
Musk embraces the fascistic censorship Twitter 1.0 defended against, just as Mike predicted he would.
Craven
Musk is a typical right winger, completely craven. He loves the taste of boot leather. He’ll grovel nicely if you are the Chinese communist party or an Indian fascist. If you are just a decent person but don’t kick him hard and often, he will think you are weak and not respect you.
Re:
He’s planning to expand Tesla production into India to keep those sweet EV subsidies that prop up his company so he’s going to keep on smooching that fascist boot.
If your reaction to students viewing a film you don’t like is to shut off the power, perhaps you shouldn’t be calling yourself a university.
Hey koby, where’s the outrage…. and he’s gone!
Re:
The usual suspects aren’t here, like always.
I guess since Freespeechonaut Musk didn’t specify which nation’s laws he was going to follow in regards to free speech he’s technically abiding by his promise since the laws in India allow for this censorship to happen.
Hmmm, India’s government said take this down instead of suggesting it investigate it and do whatever it likes so clearly this instance isn’t censorship because it was so obviously censorship it must be a Dark Brandon deep state trick and thus isn’t censorship!
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Ok, you know what, I give you a win here
That statement from Musk was not “speech absolutist”. I don’t agree with it at all. Such a request would NOT be be legal under US law, and I really don’t think Twitter should be honoring the censorship requests of India, China, Iran or anywhere else.
But keep in mind Twitter shouldn’t be following the censorship requests of the EU, either, or NZ or any of the other “nice” countries that don’t properly have free speech. Those requests are just as wrong and in conflict Americans hold (or should hold) as India’s demand. And they definitely shouldn’t follow any “suggestions” of the FBI that aren’t even legal to give here.
Re: Funny that you should mention the EU
Pre-Elon Twitter fought against the EU’s censorial Digital Service’s Act. Elon supported the DSA. Out of ignorance, maybe, but it’s Elon who thought that he knew better than Old Twitter did.