Post 3 - Eight Values of Free Expression

 Personal View

Of the eight values of free expression, the one I resonate with most is promoting innovation. In the world of game design, expression is crucial to success. Like the value describes, in a country where free speech is both protected and encouraged, creativity can thrive. 

Some games, as is true of other forms of media and art, serve to send a message or express the developers' view of the world. One of such games is Metal Gear Solid; a game chock full of anti-war and anti-government sentiment that just so happens to also have an incredibly compelling and complex story. Without the protection of free speech, games like Metal Gear Solid would never get to be appreciated, and would likely be shut down before they ever reached shelves.

Metal Gear franchise portal:https://www.konami.com/mg/us/en/

Social Media and Free Expression

Social media has links to a number of the eight values of free expression, and it very well could be connected to each and every one of them in due time. 

Social media's strongest connection lies in it being a marketplace of ideas. Whatever topic you seek out, you can surely find a massive variety of content on it. Social media is a web of facts, opinions, and falsehoods. The longer you use it, the more difficult they become to distinguish. One can only hope that like the description states, truth becomes stronger than falsehood in their endless grapple that is social media.

Social media isn't purely an engine for confusion however. It can also be an avenue for self-actualization. A great many people have made a career out of social media simply by being themselves. A feat like this is only possible in a society that promotes and protects free expression.

Current Event - The TikTok Ban

Recently, the United States government has moved to ban TikTok, a social media platform that focuses on sharing short-form video content. The app owned by a Chinese company. Naturally, this means that usage data is being collected by said Chinese company. This data collection is unsettling for the U.S. government, as they claim the data collected could be used for malicious purposes, one official going so far as saying it is "a gun pointed straight at our heads."

In my personal opinion, I think this issue is blown somewhat out of proportion. I can understand the U.S. government being upset that the data from one of the most popular social media apps is not accessible to them, but a ban is excessive. A quick glance at the article below reveals some of the justifications senators are using for the ban of this app. To someone in the app's target audience like myself, the points these people make seem outlandish and disconnected. 

Beyond my admittedly biased ranting, to ban of TikTok is to encroach on free expression. The United States government is removing a platform that millions use to make their voices heard. Additionally, thousands are being put out of jobs. As I mentioned earlier, social media is a career path that numerous individuals have chosen, and rebuilding a viewer base on another platform is no easy feat. This ban is not an action a nation that prides itself on protecting free speech should, in my mind, take.

ABC News TikTok ban article: https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/senate-mulls-tiktok-ban-amid-us-national-security/story?id=108321771