Blogging note
I've always been aware of the possibility that I myself might be targeted for censorship. There has been at least one attempt to get me shut down, a few years ago when I first started posting links about the transgender issue. I'm not as easy to pigeonhole ideologically as some others are, and I'm not a political blogger as such -- but especially on an internet where so many busybodies, whiners, and bluenoses of whatever stripe practically make a hobby of being offended by things, I'm sure there are those who would find something here to get upset about.
My best judgment is that it's unlikely I'll get shut down, but it would be foolish not to be prepared just in case. I would advise anyone who finds what I post interesting to bookmark my Tumblr blog. So far I've just been using it to repost things I find on other Tumblr blogs, but can't link to directly for various reasons, so I can include them in the Saturday link round-ups. However, I could write my own posts on the Tumblr blog. If this main blog ever vanishes, check the Tumblr blog -- that's where I'll be posting updates on what I'm doing about it. If I can't get the main blog restored, I might just use the Tumblr blog going forward, or I might set up a Substack blog. Substack has a reputation for being firmly dedicated to free speech, but I'm not sure whether normal comment moderation is available there. I'd have to investigate options and decide where to go if the situation actually arose.
I've also been going back systematically through older posts and saving the more valuable ones in a format which, I hope, would make it fairly easy to re-create them on another platform. I'm doing the same with the substantive current posts. I'd advise anyone who has a political blog to take similar precautions. One of the censored bloggers reports that, right before his blog was removed, he got a huge increase in fake page views -- about a million in one day. He thinks it might have been an automated "report abuse" attack. So if you see something like that on your own blog, it may be a warning sign.
One way or another, if this blog is ever removed, I will be back -- probably fairly quickly -- with a renewed emphasis on posting the kind of material most likely to piss off the would-be censors.
Update (5:00 AM): Blogspot has already restored the blog of the guy who appealed its removal, including all existing posts. So it was down apparently for less than one full day. Looking back through its recent posts, there are plenty of things that would offend people who disagree with his political viewpoint (as I do), but nothing that would remotely justify removing the blog. The other blog, which was removed a week or two ago, is still gone.
posted by Infidel753 at 12:22 AM
18 Comments:
I'm on this ride until it's over. I've been looking at other blog hosting sites; WordPress for one. "Moving with Mitchell" is hosted over there, but I had thought WordPress was in the process of sun-setting. So far, I've not had anyone negatively (right-wing-ish) commented about the content of my blog, so I will consider myself lucky... or just still well under the RADAR.
I suspect that Google is training their AI to scan every blog for "inappropriate" content.
We are with you in this fight. Do not back down, please.
Was it a post that was removed, or it sounds like the whole blog was taken down? If it were to happen, hopefully you can find us and let us know of your new address then.
Yes, it is an increasing problem. I was recently put on the "naughty step" by Reddit for using the word "fag". I'm British (and they know that and my comments make that clear) and I smoke and that was the context I used it in.
Related: I did say I'd report on how Firefox VPN is working out. Fine. It is far from a complete solution but it seems to work. Firefox is the only "mainstream" browser that isn't based on Chromium. OK, Safari is Webkit but that is very closely related to Chromium.
Rade: "AI" scanning could certainly explain it. Since "AI" constantly gets things wrong, it could be reading even quite innocuous things as ToS violations. That has actually happened on Tumblr, where there have actually been cases where (for example) their automated system flagged pictures of deserts as NSFW because it mistook the color for skin tones and interpreted them as nudes.
I've thought about WordPress. I know a lot of people use it, but it sounds complicated to use. In the unlikely event that Blogspot someday deletes me and won't restore, I'd look into it more.
Anon: Thank you! I appreciate the support. I wouldn't want to stick with a platform where I felt I had to self-censor.
Anvil: In both cases, the entire blog was removed (one has now been restored). I know of a couple of blogs where individual posts keep getting put behind registration-required locks, but that's for sexual content, not political.
As I said, if this blog ever goes down, check the Tumblr blog for updates. I'd contact whomever I could, but the vast majority of people who read this blog never comment, so I have no way of knowing who they are.
NickM: I've heard a lot of stories about Reddit. They seem to be the most censorship-prone platform of all.
Even nowadays, I suspect most Americans don't know that the word "fag" means a cigarette in the UK.
I'm glad the VPN is working out. I've never had the need to use one because nothing I've ever tried to look at was restricted for the place I live in, but growing numbers of people certainly need them.
I appreciate the heads up. It is ridiculous that platforms think that censorship is a good thing. I have always supported free speech, even when I disagree with it. (Isn't that the very definition of free speech?) Unless someone is advocating violence or something equally egregious, there should not ever be any censorship. It is good to know where to find you if that were to happen to you. I'm with you on this, sir!
That sucks! I had a Tumblr a long time ago and deleted it because it was boring. I just created another one, in case of emergency non access to posting here. May I say that I despise WordPress? I had an account for ages with loads of followers, most of whom never visited or commented on anything. If you don’t pay, they stick repulsive ads on your posts, like for foot fungus medication (with pics!). Also, you barely get any image storage unless you pay. Anyway, I am rarely political publicly, but when I am it’s a certainty that I will be attacked, by everyone! 😂
Darrell: Thank you. I certainly am not defending things like violence, threats, or doxing, but when it comes to expression of opinion (or artistic expression), free speech must apply to all points of view, even the most noxious, or it means nothing.
Both of the censored political blogs I mention in this post are right-wing, incidentally. It makes no difference. Censorship of opinion must be condemned no matter who the target is.
Paula: Tumblr is an odd bird. It's definitely designed for a very different style of interaction than Blogspot or WordPress. If I end up making that blog my main one, I'll have to give some thought to how to handle it. But I really doubt I'll get shut down. I'm quite careful about avoiding things like threats or advocating violence. It would purely be a matter of someone disapproving of my opinions.
Thanks for the warning about WordPress. I think I saw some of those foot fungus ads before I got uBlock origin.
Well... I dunno. I think even in 1st Amendment USA I think it's good to have privacy online and even if you don't need it now it's worth getting au fait with the thing. What worries me is this: "The Sound of No Shrimps Fucking".
Now, if that sounds like Quentin Zenantino then let me explain. Shrimp mating is loud so if the USN sonar noticed a hole in a shrimp mating area then that might be an indication of a Soviet sub however quiet it was...
I dunno about the USA but over here there is a move to create a stigma about internet privacy (for the children, obviously) so if you're in stealth mode then you are clearly up to no good.
We are getting very close to a presumption of guilt, not innocence and a lot of this is basically a moral panic that TPTB are trying to exploit. I'm only 52 and I've lived through a few...
Darrell has it about right.
My inexpert observation:
There are hosts that are inexpensive to the point of having only nominal cost.
Do at least a few minutes of research for complaints. For example: A past host saw a hacking event from Moscow as nothing more than a marketing opportunity.
I now use Dreamhost. There are other reputable possibilities.
One additional note: Infidel has been a good mentor on security.
Infidel, I certainly did not mean to imply that you supported violence, threats or other such nonsense. I have read your writing long enough to know that you are a good guy, despite us not agreeing on some major things. There definitely is a lot of common ground though, and you always argue your position soundly.
I hope you never get shut down.
I had Blogger Censor one Post that there was nothing at all in the Content to be Offended by... only Seven Dear Readers were able to access the Post coz Blogger installed a Sensitive Content Warning and never explained Why? All Seven said it was much ado about nothing. Since everyone had trouble even accessing it I just took the Post down and snuck some of it in newer Posts with no problems. Who knows why or who is responsible for Moderation or dealing with Reader Complaints. To me, those who would get the Vapors or clutch their Pearls about anyone's Blog, Book, TV Station... need not BE there exposing themselves to any of it. It's all voluntary, not mandatory, and if it is anything you find Offensive, just Move On. I defend the Right to Free Speech and have the Maturity to Agree to Disagree with Civility and the knowledge that it's not all about me all of the time. Everyone is entitled to their point of view, I don't have to like or approve of it, but, they have a Right to it regardless. I also prefer mine be Respected as my Right as well. So many folks these days I honestly feel are looking hard to find things to be Offended by... and will make something up if they can't be legitimately Offended enough.
NickM: I'm aware of the intrusive laws in the UK and some other countries and the value of VPNs as a work-around for those, but it doesn't really relate to the topic of blog censorship specifically.
Burr: Thanks. I'm security-conscious and try to encourage it in others.
If I ever needed to leave Blogspot I'd have to look into other platforms in addition to the major ones. My top issue would be that they don't censor blogs due to content. Substack has the best reputation there, but as I say, they don't seem to have proper comment moderation, without which I'd be swamped with trolls and spam and people going off-topic.
Darrell: No worries. I didn't think you were implying that. I was agreeing with you.
Ricko: Thanks. I can guarantee you that even if it happens, I won't stay shut down.
Bohemian: Censors in general are stupid. You may have heard that in South Africa under apartheid the book Black Beauty was banned because the title made the censors think it was potentially subversive, when in fact it's about a black horse and has nothing to do with race at all. Nowadays initial bans or deletions are probably being done automatically by "AI", so you'll get the same ridiculous outcomes except even worse and more random. Now that one of the deleted blogs mentioned in this post is back up, I've looked it over -- and while it's full of stuff that would be offensive to liberals, it's not unusually offensive for a political blog, and there's nothing there that could reasonably justify deleting it. Presumably appealing the decision triggers a review by a human. But we're all basically at the mercy of random decisions made by badly-wired robots.
I'm glad the one blog was able to get his blog back. That's really sad that something like that could happen in the first place.
It's infuriating. I don't understand why anyone would be in the blog-hosting business if they don't understand the importance of letting bloggers say what they choose.
Thankfully nobody has ever attempted to close down my blog, but then the comments I make on my blog are seldom controversial. It's good to have a rescue plan for the possibility of censorship.
It's true that non-political blogs are generally at much lower risk. But these days the Professional Offended People are always broadening the scope of what they get performatively upset by.
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Please be on-topic and read the comments policy. Spam, trolls, and fight-pickers will be deleted. If you don't have a Blogspot account and aren't sure how to comment, please see here. Fair warning: anything supporting transgender ideology, or negative toward Brexit, or in favor of a military draft or compulsory national service, will be deleted. I am not obligated to provide a platform for views I find morally abhorrent.
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