In defence of the internet

Day after day, the already deeply tarnished reputations of the filth-peddling, tax-dodging, terror-abetting internet behemoths sink lower into the mire.

Apparently above the law, they allow on their platforms the most depraved content, from extreme pornography to terrorist propaganda and images of child abuse.

These are the opening words of today’s Daily Mail comment.

I had planned to write today about grammar schools, but that can wait.  In my most recent post I described the internet as perhaps the most truly egalitarian invention in the history of the world, and now I feel moved to defend it against the invective of a national newspaper (which of course has a considerable online presence).

 

The opening salvo quoted above may make some fair comments, but surely lots of companies seek to avoid paying taxes, and surely almost anyone who has ever published anything could perhaps stand accused of peddling filth.

As for abetting terror, has the Daily Mail ever urged its readers never to vote in elections for terrorist politicians like Tony Blair and David Cameron?  The comments continues:

... rape apologists, anti-Semites and hate preachers receive taxpayers’ money when government-funded adverts appear alongside their YouTube videos.

Adverts for the Home Office, the Royal Navy and the BBC have been run beside videos by the likes of US white nationalist and ex-Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke ... Adverts for Argos, Sainsbury’s and The Guardian appeared next to videos by US preacher Steven Anderson, who praised a terror attack on a gay nightclub.

No definition of the term hate preacher is offered.

I am not aware of who the Daily Mail has in mind when they refer to rape apologists and anti-Semites, but I have often watched videos by David Duke in the past, and never found any of them offensive that I can recall.  As for Steven Anderson, I have just today watched some of his videos, and he comes across as very reasonable – although admittedly I have yet to watch any video of his which discusses homosexuality.

I am also interested to know how many people have ever died in attacks on gay nightclubs, and how that figure compares with the number of people who have ever been killed by the Royal Navy.

The BBC has for many years now advertised the life-ruining National Lottery.  In 2004 it also sought the imprisonment of Nick Griffin and Mark Collett – two brave men who dared to crusade against paedophile grooming gangs at a time when the mainstream media was happily turning a blind eye.

The comment goes on to make a few more reasonable points, but it is hard to avoid the conclusion that what the dark forces behind the Daily Mail really want is for the internet to come under the control of censors who will ensure that the internet never peddles any point of view other than that espoused by the mainstream media.

As a final point, the opening reference to behemoths is an allusion to a creature mentioned in The Old Testament.