Content Management

Eric Renderking Fisk | August 8th, 2018

Here's everything you need to know about the debate about whether or not Facebook, Google's Blogger, or YouTube has the right or the obligation to censor people. If you didn't use their damn services, you wouldn't have to worry about them deleting your content, would you?

I {heart} reader and listern suggestions, but...

There are some suggestions that I love getting, such as suggestions on what I should review or rant about next. I love the suggestions on new features I should have on The Fedora Chronicles, who we should interview on The Metaphysical Connection, what event we should cover, book authors we should promote, vendors we should advertise, and so on.

We love help from our readers and listeners about what needs to be reported and covered. All of that's awesome.

But when it comes to social media - we only use it to let folks know what's going on via here. We use Facebook to keep our group together and participate and use Twitter to alert the folks on things that are interesting or observations we think are important or just amusing.

We will never use other people's platforms to publish entire bodies of work or rely on them to keep our content for us on their servers.

There are people who try to make helpul suggestions on how we could "save money" or "get exposure" or "make things easier" by using "free" platforms. There are reasons why I've said no in the past and explained that there's a reason why I do what I do. I've put into a lot of thought and effort into actually planning for the future and possible (and sometimes seeming invevitble) winds of social/polticial change.

Thanks to what's been happening with social media shutting down some other content creators - I'm sad to say I'm vindicated in a bitter sweet way.

Return To The Temple Of Censorship

What might seem as an unrelated controversy - we have all noticed an effort by people to self-censor themselves more. They are letting others dicate what they say, deleting posts that others might find might offensive, and posting preemptive appology posts for something they might have offended people. We have all witnessed people getting shouted down for posting an opinion that's on "the wrong" side of the issue or partisan political isle.

We have also seen a lot of people actually get fired from their jobs because of something stupid they've said on Facebook or Twitter; whether or not these people deserved what happened to them is something everyone should judge for themselves on a case-by-case basis. There isn't - or shouldn't be - a 'one size fits all' solution to offensive posts.

Last week I said that I was very concerned about the growing amount of censorship on social media. There are those founders and CEO's of these platforms who are champions of Free Speach only when those who are speaking echo their thoughts and views - of if those on the oppisite end of the political/social specturm are willing to pay to play in their sandbox and don't cause too much embarrasing drama for them. "Free Speech" with strict "community standards" and guidlines isn't really all that free. When content creators become too much of an embarrassment, the media platforms cut them lose with fanfare and vitue signaling. "See what great people we are!"

Oh, why yes... we should have some reasonable guidelines, a little censorship that will keep people from yelling "fire" in the preverbial crouded theater. The basic rules against slander and libal should still stand...

Paranoid VS. Real Enemies?

I was once called "unreasonable" and "paranoid" by good frineds of mine when I said there are somethings I would not do. I said that I would not allow the supreme rulers of censorship on those other platforms to dictate what I can or can not post. I said that it's enivitible that the poltical climate could change and what I say today might be considered "insulting" and "offensive" by other people tomorrow.

By the way - these are conversations that I've had with people after I've been harrassed and investigated by the govenor-now-sentaor from New Hamphsire, The Department of Homeland Defense, The Atourney General of The State Of New Hampshire, two political candidates for State Rep, and threatened with a law suit by a former town administrator for daring to ask questions about sweetheart exclusivitity deals with an internet access company here in The Town of Rindge.

Paranoid? Justifiably.

Go Ahead, Pay The Premium and Protect Yourself.

I pay a premium for my hosting services for various reasons, not just because they provide great service if anything should happen. My website service provider has gone to bat for me several times in protecting my civil rights.

Someone who calls himself a webmaster and contnet creator who uses "free" services to host his videos, podcasts, articles and columns, and art is a genuine fool. These people are fools because they are generating revenue for other people and if they do see a percentage they're only seeing a fraction of the money made with their content. They tend to forget that there are those people out there that make it a sport to attack people who they merely don't like and turn it into a game to get people to quit these social media accounts and get content litterally errased from these platforms.

I'm writing this after news broke that YouTube and their owners, Google, deleted a world famous conspiracy theorist and his website's content. Some might read this rant thinking that I'm defending him - trust me when I say this character is a big boy and he can take care of himself and doesn't need Eric Fisk from The Fedora Chronicles to fight his battles.

This guy and I have only ONE thing in common - we both believe the American Governement lies and cheats constantly and consistantly regardless of who occupies The White House and what party they belong to, and perhaps The President is a mere figurehead who reports to someone else. He and I part ways in our methods of what we say and the conclusions beyond that threshold.

If "they" can shut down a world famous conspiracy theorist and his website- and they did - then who is to say that companies like Netflix and Amazon could be forced to remove documentaries and books that are critical of companies like Monsantos, Seimens, IG Farben, Wal-Mart, or cooperations that have products or buisness practices that harm people? Who is to say that political speach won't be targeted next for closure if you do not fawn and adore the favorite cadidate chose my the darling of the Deep State?

If they can shut down this world famous conspiracy theorist's content on "free" social platforms, how hard could it be to shut down a crazy website that sneaks social-political commentary into rants and movies and the evils of modern fashion if that content was also hosted on the same "free" social media platforms? It's impossible for them to remove my content because how I've chosen to distribute our content - I don't rely on them.

As crazy as it sounds, I actually know what I'm doing. I do what I do for a reason. I do it this way to remain in control of our content and protect all the work I've done so far. And if you create content and you use the services I've mentioned - and you use them exclusively, stop and don't again. I'm not calling on a boycott, I'm suggesting that you protect what you've created and use a host you can trust or publish your work with someone with a website you trust and respect.

Content Management

I {heart} reader and listern suggestions, but...

Return To The Temple Of Censorship

Paranoid VS. Real Enemies?

Go Ahead, Pay The Premium and Protect Yourself.

Further Reading