Why Does Free Speech Matter?
“Goebbels was in favor of freedom of speech for views he liked. So was Stalin. If you’re in favor of freedom of speech, that means you’re in favor of freedom of speech precisely for views you despise.”
Noam Chomsky
Progress
Free speech allows us to question norms and discuss new ideas. Every human innovation, discovery, or change starts with the right to speak up.
Justice
Censorship is commonly used by governments to punish criticism or suppress voter knowledge. Free speech allows you to hold leaders accountable when they get things wrong.
Truth
Censorship can often lead to important information being suppressed. In many countries, people still believe outdated or harmful ideas because censorship has made it impossible for truth to be heard.
Fundamental Flaws With Proposed Bill
It’s exclusionary
The Bill assumes that the Government and its accredited media and educational institutions can determine what is true in conjunction with digital platforms without taking the experiences and viewpoints of ordinary Australians into account.
It’s divisive & inequitable
Section 16(2) divides citizens into two classes:
- Those whom the Govt. deems trustworthy to participate in public forums without being monitored and reported on, and
- Those whom the Govt. deems cannot be trusted.
There is no scientific, philosophical or moral basis for the view that those citizens who work for or are accredited by the Government are more trustworthy than other Australians.
It will destroy democracy
The whole of the democratic endeavor is based on the assumption that citizens will be able to access the information they need to make voting decisions.
These days, this information is available on digital platforms. This Bill will categorise some political party viewpoints as misinformation and have it removed from digital platforms. Voters will be in the dark.
It will make Australia weak
Countries that cannot contend with diverse viewpoints inevitably miss perspectives that could otherwise help them navigate a competitive global environment.
It’s an abuse of power
Citizens want the Government to maximise their freedoms whilst having regard for others. Government has no democratic mandate for controlling what viewpoints citizens can access.
State media will become the only media
Independent media organisations, journalists and bloggers will be thrust under a web of complex reporting standards and misinformation reports attempting to ruin their reputation. Standing against Govt. authorised publications that are excluded from this harassment will become unprofitable then impossible.
It is anti-competitive
This Bill will give Big Tech platforms like Facebook and Google license to create what the Electronic Frontier Foundation calls anti-competitive wedges. They will be able to set rules for their competitors that only they have the means to comply with, with ACMA stepping in with fines for non-compliance.
This “license-to-kill competitors” is all the more galling as it is being proposed at the very same time that regulators around the globe are cracking down on Big Tech companies for their size and market power.
It applies to everyone
There are no minimum-sizes of “digital services” that the Bill applies to, only that they operate within specific industries.
The industries are extremely broad and not well defined (e.g. “instant messaging”, “web-forums”, “dating-sites”).
Using the powers granted by this Bill it is conceivable that the Government & ACMA could force any website which offers any type of user-interactivity to comply with these onerous regulations, or be punished for not doing so.
It applies globally
Even an unwitting website owner in a foreign country like the United States – with no intention of providing a service specifically to users in Australia – will be brought in-scope of this Bill.
Simply that this person’s website is published on the global Internet and can be accessed by users in Australia is enough that they be forced to comply.
This is extremely hypocritical when at the very same time the Australian government is decrying the Hong Kong government for the extraterritorial application of its views on free speech harms within Australia.
You Can Help!
Your Voice Matters – Most Australians are unaware of this pernicious Bill and its attempt to control the information you can access. Please share this website and post your thoughts about the Bill on your digital platform whilst you can. Contribute to the dialogue by writing thoughtful submissions to calls for feedback and parliament inquiries.
Reach out to your Members of Parliament and Senators in your State – Express your concerns to them. Urge them to take action and stop this disastrous Bill.
About Us
We are a significantly-sized and diverse group of Australians from across the political spectrum who came together out of shared concern for this dangerous Bill.
A few people you can reach out to to get involved with our team are listed below.
Chris Baxter
chris.baxter@stopaussiecensorship.org
I work in protecting innovation and the commercialisation of new technologies, where new ideas are the lifeblood of a healthy business.
Companies fail when team members are not encouraged to share new ideas. The same is true in society. If contrarian and inconvenient perspectives are never aired in public, it becomes impossible for society to make sense of this condition, challenges and risks.
This sense-making process and most importantly, public debate, is the cornerstone of our democratic system.
Reuben Richardson
reuben.richardson@stopaussiecensorship.org
I am a partner in a small engineering firm located in North Queensland. We serve a variety of clients in Australia and abroad. Our reputation is built by acting honestly, with integrity, offering unbiased professional judgement and applying ethical standards that exceed community expectations.
Similarly, for Australia as a whole, free speech is required to ensure the integrity of our democracy. Where unbiased judgement can be given by the everyday Australian. Without free speech, unpopular opinions can be suppressed, leading to the deterioration of our democracy.
