cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/35786937
Free Speech Goes Only One Way
this post was submitted on 12 Sep 2025
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Fediverse vs Disinformation
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Pointing out, debunking, and spreading awareness about state- and company-sponsored astroturfing on Lemmy and elsewhere. This includes social media manipulation, propaganda, and disinformation campaigns, among others.
Propaganda and disinformation are a big problem on the internet, and the Fediverse is no exception.
What's the difference between misinformation and disinformation? The inadvertent spread of false information is misinformation. Disinformation is the intentional spread of falsehoods.
By equipping yourself with knowledge of current disinformation campaigns by state actors, corporations and their cheerleaders, you will be better able to identify, report and (hopefully) remove content matching known disinformation campaigns.
Community rules
Same as instance rules, plus:
- No disinformation
- Posts must be relevant to the topic of astroturfing, propaganda and/or disinformation
Related websites
- EU vs Disinfo
- FactCheck.org
- PolitiFact
- Snopes
- Media Bias / Fact Check
- PEN America
- Media Matters
- FAIR
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Prologue: I do not disagree with this post one bit.
Notably, "free speech" has both a constitutional and colloquial usage.
Constitutionally, your First Amendment right to Free Speech (in the US) is a guard against the state interfering with your speech, even if it is offensive. Still, that's not universal; consider libel and slander, gag orders, for example. The Constitutional free speech protection does not shield you from consequences of your speech handed down by non-governmental persons or organizations.
Colloquially, "free speech" is often used to refer to situations like the one posted here: where a non-state actor takes a retributive action against a speaker. This usage is leveraged by people across the political spectrum.
Yeah the fash like to use "free speech" to mean "I can say whatever I want whenever I want and no one is allowed to criticize me for it" which mysteriously does not apply to anyone who isn't also a fash
Counterpoint: fascism doesn't get included in free speech. But everyone else is allowed to voice an opinion.