Blog Post 3- Eight Values of Free Expression

    

Garrett Norberg

6-19-22

(COM-1450-01)

As I was reading and learning about the Eight Values of Free Expression, I could not help but think about the horrific scene on January 6th of last year.   This recollection includes the role social media played during the events leading up to January 6th, during the attack on the Capitol as well as the many post-attack activities such as the arrests, hearings, protests, and media reports.  

I will start my key post with the events leading up to the attack on the United States Capitol. President Trump ran for his second term and lost to Joe Biden.  During election time, social media outlets such as. Twitter restricted Trump and other voters from posting comments that were believed to be misstatements or information not factual. This is strange to me because participation in self-government value allows people to communicate their position so there can be an informed debate.  If that is restricted, how can there be an informed debate?  In other words, there would only be potentially one side of the story.

One of the values of free expression is called stable change. This means "a society in which angry and alienated citizens are allowed to speak their mind, or "vent," will be more stable, as people will be less likely to resort to violence."  This clearly did not happen as it relates to the January 6th riots.  People were angry, felt alienated, and clearly spoke their minds about concerns over election fraud and political injustice.  However, many of them were not peaceful and resorted to extreme violence.  In fact, some were chanting to "hang Mike Pence."  This reminded me of stories I've heard about extreme violence in other countries trying to overthrow the government.

The next value of free expression that I'd like to explore is called individual self-fulfillment.  This one allows free speech and. for people to express themselves.  Those protestors on January 6th were viewed by some as joining an attack or insurrection against the government instead of peacefully protesting.  In a Time magazine article called 'Why It Is Critical that January 6 Rioters' Rights are Respected," (Elliott 2021) raises the argument as to why those who protested previously about police brutality deserve to have their civil rights respected but those who rioted on January 6th may not because it was believed to be an insurrection.  Should that remove their civil rights or right to the value of free expression?  I am not sure as I can see both sides of the argument.  In fact, social media and media outlets inflamed the issue by making it a political issue about democratic rights and taking sides instead of reporting just the facts so we the people could make an informed decision.  

The last value of free expression that I would like to write about is protect dissent.  This value prevents mob rule and protects the minority view,  no matter how unpopular.  On  January 6th, social media outlets like Twitter and Facebook reported the mob had turned into an insurrection.  So while they had the right to protest and disagree with the government, the mob did not have the right to stop the democratic process to name the new president of the United States.

The Eight  Values of  Free Expression really changed the way I think about social media, media outlets, and civil and legal rights.

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