The advancement of technology has given rise to a new form of media, one that allows the common user around the globe to make his or her views heard. However, just like its predecessor, the Old Media, there has been attempts to censor the new media.
Firstly, before we go any further, there is the question: is it even possible to censor the new media, considering that the new media is made up of millions common users like me and you. The answer is obviously: YES! Here's and article on some of the most censored countries in the world http://sg.yfittopostblog.com/2011/01/05/top-3-countries-that-heavily-censor-the-internet/
Back to the debate on censorship, there has been debates on whether censorship is really needed. For the debate lets assume their are two camps:The pro censorship camp and the anti censorship camp.Lets look at the least of their arguments.
Pro Censorship camp:
The argument made by the Pro censorship camp is Humans need some form of control without which, we will start abusing our unlimited power and start offending pratically almost everyone. Another argument for censorship is that censorship prevent extremists from easily spreading their message of hate throughout the country and inciting violence and unrest, which can potentially destabilize the country. Famous examples of people or organization who are pro censorship is the Singapore Government and the People's Republic of China's (PRC)government.(Read article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_crab_(Internet_slang))
Anti Censorship camp:
The Anti censorship side, on the other hand , argue that freedom of expression is a right which every human being should have when they are born and that any supression of freedom is a violation of human rights.Or that information should be shared freely there should be no secrets and no censorships in attempt to keep secrets.Some examples of people or organization that supports this view is Julian Assange(think wikileaks) and Human Rights Watch.
Why would anyone want censor the new media?
There's are many answers to this question. Some want to censor the new media as they are afraid that their dirty secrets might be aired online by some unknown netizens while others do it for more positive reasons, like trying to prevent some immature people from posting something offensive that has the potential to spark a riot. Like the old media, censorship in the new media can be a double edged sword: it can help society or just supress it.
Conclusion:
Truth is, the new media has given the power to almost every normal citizen. However, some people do not match this new found power with a high level of maturity and start posting hate messages and all kinds of offensive stuff online.Therefore I personally feel that there should be some form of censorship around ,even for new media, to contain extremist views from spreading ,especially in such an age where you can teach people how to make a bomb on the internet. However, if not done carefully, it can turn a country into a North Korea. What are your personal views on censorship and what justifications you have that support your view? Feel free to post and comment your opinion.
Sources:
Wikipedia.com
The Straits Times(Newspaper)
