The power of the ‘censorship industrial complex’ continues to grow. We must fight for free expression.
The free flow of information is in serious jeopardy. One of the main threats is the war on “misinformation” that is being coordinated by the ‘censorship industrial complex‘ comprised of governments, Big Tech, global foundations and non-profits, high profile academic institutions, fact checkers, and think tanks. These forces work to limit the range of views and opinions that can be expressed on important topics. This censorship accelerated during the pandemic (those who questioned COVID vaccine safety and efficacy were particularly targeted) but is quickly broadening to include censorship of other health information like intermittent fasting and the ketogenic diet. Worse, this process is being increasingly driven by artificial intelligence (AI).
As ANH founder Robert Verkerk, PhD recently put it: “The goal appears to be to reduce complex, uncertain issues to a single, over-simplistic narrative that has been selected by the planet’s biggest power brokers.” What we’re facing is an effort to establish certain “truths” that are not up for debate—and if you don’t like it, you better fall in line or risk your career and reputation.
For a case in point, consider YouTube’s recent revision to its medical misinformation policy:
We do not allow content that promotes information that contradicts health authority guidance on treatments for specific health conditions, including promotion of specific harmful substances or practices that have not been approved by local health authorities or the World Health Organization (WHO) as safe or effective, or that have been confirmed to cause severe harm.
If the health information you are sharing doesn’t comport with government medicine, you will be silenced. For COVID, that essentially bars discussion of treatments other than vaccination, even though there is ample evidence to support alternatives for the treatment and prevention of COVID. The same goes for many other diseases: will evidence-based, alternative therapies for cancer, diabetes, or heart disease be suppressed? It’s certainly looking that way.
Methods of censorship have also become more sophisticated and insidious. Big Tech can insert warning labels or information panels on specific content, or downrank content in online searches (called ‘shadow banning‘). This is a very common technique by which almost all content creators in the alternative health space, ourselves included, face stealth actions by social media platforms to limit the visibility of posts, this process being increasingly guided by AI.
For a deep dive into this topic, check out ANH-International’s brilliant new article. We at ANH-USA are going to be doing much more work in this space in the coming months to expose the censors and fight for free speech and expression.
