8 Values of Free Expression

​​The sixth of the eight values of free expression is to Promote Tolerance. This can be referred to as the Tolerant Society: Freedom of Speech and Extremist Speech. This idea was mainly developed by Lee Bollinger, the current president of Columbia University. Promoting tolerance allows for actions to have consequences but also remembering that ignorant people cannot be controlled. 

It can be argued that the freedom of speech, especially through the practice of expanding protection to speech that is hateful or violent, teaches us to become more tolerant in all aspects of life; and that a more tolerant society is better. 

The first of the eight values of free expression is the Marketplace of ideas. This can be referred to as the discovery of truth and was first suggested by John Milton, who first said that when truth and falsehood are allowed freely, the truth will win. This also is what makes the truth even stronger.

This stood out to me in addition to promoting tolerance since it supports the idea that the truth prevails. Even when faced with falsehood, the chance for the truth to rise above is likely. This gives people a chance to promote their ideas and for others to accept and embrace these ideas. People are going to gravitate towards things that they believe, even if the press is construing the media. 

Promoting tolerance and social media go hand in hand and as an analyst, you can draw a connection between the two. A theory can help explain a real-world problem by providing concepts to what we observe to show a relationship between these concepts. 

Using social media platforms has many advantages, but with those come many disadvantages. Referring to the dark side of social media, hate speech, cyberbullying, misinformation, and slander are all relevant topics that are part of free speech; and the debate continues if these are protected under the first amendment. Though the majority of violent speech on social media is bad, this has even led to some platforms, such as Twitter, silencing those who speak out about anything and everything. On a larger scale, this is known as prior restraint; when the government stops you from speaking or writing before you even do it. This completely violates the first amendment to freedom of speech. 

On a lighter note, many benefits of social media positively promote tolerance. A core memory that still resides with me is the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement in 2020 which created an uproar throughout the entire nation. Though the ignorant people who frowned on the movement were not generally affected, this movement had a new generation of support from a younger demographic. Leaders of the movement used social media platforms to organize protests, speak out against the government and establish a trend of BLM across all of the major platforms, such as Instagram, Twitter, and Tiktok. Bringing awareness to the discrimination of African Americans in our nation promoted tolerance, leading to a more inclusive and improved society.