Big tech censorship continues to be a major concern. I first wrote about this issue almost a year ago. I’ve also written about how it creates investment opportunities.
And this trend of censorship shows no signs of slowing — YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, TikTok and just about every other big site continue to make judgments about what is “right” for their users to express. For example, ex-New York Times writer Alex Berenson was recently banned permanently from Twitter. And of course, former president Donald Trump remains banned on all the major social media platforms.
The White House has openly admitted that it is coordinating with social media platforms to identify posts that it deems as “problematic.” The platforms then have the final say on whether the post is removed entirely or not.
I think this is an alarming trend. For me, this isn’t about whether you agree with the people who are banned. It’s about freedom of speech. Seeing the government work hand-in-hand with big tech to ban people’s expression is just disturbing.
As a result, I continue to look for new, free-speech-based social networks to invest in. I don’t think people want to have big tech decide what opinions are acceptable.
Take a look at the exploding popularity of Substack, which allows all legal views to be expressed. Alex Berenson — and hundreds of others — have flocked to the site. Substack allows anyone to easily create a newsletter and blog.
I hope the future of social media is a lot more like Substack — open and free of any kind of censorship. And I hope to be able to invest to help make it happen.