Robert Reich, American professor, author, lawyer, political commentator, and former U.S. Secretary of Labor (1993-97), is one of Twitter’s top political influencers, often enlightening the platform with a combination of wisdom and factual data.
Yesterday, Reich offered the encouraging tweet below, suggesting the surge in right-wing propaganda over the past decade can be curbed.
SUE THEM!
Yes – defamation law is there for a reason . You can’t just say stuff and ruin people . That Dominion company is a company trying to make an honest living and Fox lied about their voting machines & tried to ruin their company. That’s not right . & Fox lied for Trump .
— Lynda Upthegrove Songwriter & Music School (@LUpthegrove) February 28, 2023
Promoting lies as factual truth is NOT protected as free speech and can be very dangerous.
Ask Alex Jones how much he owes to the Sandy Hook victims’ parents.
And think about all of the lives lost to COVID-19 over baseless lies.
Consider this: If you have to lie to boost or defend a candidate, agenda, or political faction, what does it really say about the legitimacy of those things? And what does it say about you?
And no, not all Republicans are guilty of this. In fact, even legit conservatives are being victimized by some within the Trumper/MAGA/Confederate/NeoNazi faction within their own party.
… And the perpetrators will inasmuch admit it because they don’t care.
Can right-wing media lies – and lies presented by anyone as factual news – be combatted by defamation law?
A lot of supposed Trumpers replied negatively to Reich’s tweet, insisting the so-called mainstream left is guilty of falsehoods; but where are the lawsuits against CNN, MSNBC, CBS, and ABC?
Regardless of whether they exist, the same rules should apply to everyone without regard to political affiliation or assumed political affiliation.
Maybe someone should create a Defamation Suit PAC to protect America from far-right propagandists.
— @dangermouse (@dangermouse411) February 27, 2023
