the.com/censorship
The art of making something unforgettable by insisting nobody look at it.
means The suppression or control of speech, writing, images, or other expression deemed objectionable by an authority.
from From Latin 'censor,' the title of a Roman magistrate whose job was to take the census and, crucially, to police public morals — the original officials with the power to strike a citizen's name from the rolls for bad behavior. The verb 'censere' meant 'to assess, judge, or estimate,' so a censor was literally one who appraises worth. English borrowed 'censor' in the 16th century, and the act of suppressing what such a figure disapproves of became 'censorship.'
- Streisand effect
- Hiding things online makes them go viral instead
- Ancient roots
- Rome had elected officials literally called censors
- Banned books
- Forbidden titles routinely top bestseller lists
- Self-defeating
- Burned books are reprinted faster than they vanish
- Index list
- The Vatican banned books officially until 1966
chinese great firewall — blocks access to google, facebook, twitter, and 10,000+ websites in mainland china since 2010
iran internet shutdowns — complete nationwide internet blackout during november 2019 protests, lasting 4 days
facebook content moderation — removed 3.5 billion fake accounts and 22.5 million pieces of hate speech in q1 2021
saudi press freedom index — ranked 172nd out of 180 countries in 2023; detained journalists like jamal khashoggi