The Right's attack on free speech
About this episode
Nick Cohen discusses right-wing attacks on free speech with academic Emma L. Briant, highlighting the implications for researchers and technology policy.
The Right has power & money to destroy our world Nick Cohen talks to academic Emma L.Briant about a neglected threat: right-wing attacks on free speech. While acknowledging that left-wing censoriousness has damaged liberal politics, he argues that conservatives who claimed to defend open debate are now adopting authoritarian methods. The central example is the Trump administration’s attempt, through Marco Rubio and the State Department, to revoke or threaten visas and immigration status for foreign researchers who study misinformation, disinformation, platform harms, and technology policy. Emma L Briant explains that the Coalition for Independent Technology Research, of which she is a member, advocates for independent access to platform data so researchers can assess harms without depending on tech companies’ permission. Emma argues that the real target is not “censorship” but transparency. Researchers, she says, are being punished for measuring and exposing uncomfortable facts about social-media platforms, algorithmic harms, propaganda, and failures of accountability. Tech companies and their political allies frame this research as censorship because governments may use it…
People in this episode
Host: Nick Cohen
Guest: Emma L. Briant
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Coalition for Independent Technology Research, Trump administration, State Department, European-style regulation
Books & works: Digital Services Act
More episodes of The Lowdown from Nick Cohen
- The Rising intolerance of the Right
- Follow the Farage money!
- The crypto bung by-election
- Londonov - A class act no more
- The lost Brexit decade
- Keir Starmer resigns
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the The Lowdown from Nick Cohen podcast page.