Apropos our discussion in class last Saturday, this is one of the op-eds I've liked the best. It's Kara Swisher's take on how Silicon Valley likes to frame big complex issues as binary:
"Mr. Zuckerberg presented us with an either-or choice of free speech — either we have free speech or we’re China. “Whether you like Facebook or not, I think we need to come together and stand for voice and free expression,” he said with an isn’t-this-obvious tone.
But, as anyone who has lived in the real world knows, it’s much more complex. And that was the main problem with his speech — and it’s also what is at the crux of the myriad concerns we have with tech these days: Big Tech’s leaders frame the debate in binary terms. "
"Rather than say “thank you” to Mr. Zuckerberg for his speech without asking any questions, I would like to discuss how giving marginalized people a voice is different from giving malevolent users the tools to manipulate sloppy digital platforms. I would like to discuss how free speech can be valued and protected, while also putting up guardrails against abuses. I would mostly like not to be lectured to about free speech in the most simplistic of terms by people who avoid hard questions about that freedom."
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