Musk Takeover Bid Terrifies the Pro-Censorship Blue Checks

On the news of “free speech absolutist” Elon Musk’s hostile takeover bid of Twitter, the Washington Post’s Max Boot took to social media, along with many others, to claim that the threat of unregulated speech undermines “democracy”:

I am frightened by the impact on society and politics if Elon Musk acquires Twitter. He seems to believe that on social media anything goes. For democracy to survive, we need more content moderation, not less.

— Max Boot (@MaxBoot) April 14, 2022

First of all, who is “we”? There is no grand “we” in a pluralistic open society engaged in debate. He wants content moderation. And maybe the inability, or refusal, to comprehend this obvious fact is the root philosophical problem with all those who say they are “frightened” by unmoderated political speech. If “democracy” meant small-l liberalism, then Boot would be defending free expression, as a neutral value, not just a principle upheld by law. But these days, “democracy” often amounts to little more than majoritarian bullying. And “content moderation” is little more than an effort to control political discourse.