The internet changed so much about our daily lives and how we live them. It not only allowed for the amplification of our personal lives, but also a brand new global platform to amplify our use of the First Amendment. I think that when discussing the internet and its impact on freedom of expression, you should first recognize that the UN sees the internet as a human right. Brookings dives into this decision and how Article 19 impacts access to the internet. Although this is a “soft law” without any mechanisms for punishment built in, the recognition of the right to what the internet has to offer is significant. Article 19 is meant to start holding countries accountable for human rights violations, and allowing them access to the internet is a big part of that. Ford Foundation also discusses the importance of this. In an interview with David Kaye, the UN’s special rapporteur, highlighting that governments will always try to restrict the flow of information, going on to discuss that journalists and whistleblowers need to be protected.
Diving further into how freedom of expression has changed with the inclusion of the internet, it allows for global platforms when it comes to protest and speaking freely. Access Now discusses how the internet was a go-to place to assemble and protest during the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, internet shutdowns were also seemingly used to stop these online protests from happening. Knight Colombia also explores the globalization of public forums through a lawsuit regarding blocked accounts on President Donald Trump’s Twitter. A lawsuit that Trump lost, when the judge ruled that his Twitter feed is, in fact, a public forum, as he also uses his personal account to share government information.
It is clear that a global public forum is a major change in the landscape of freedom of expression; this has a huge impact on the way that information is spread online. And when there is a major platform to share information, opinions come with that, to me the biggest change that came with the internet was the immediate globalization of free speech. Not only is the information globalized, but it’s also instantaneous now. The rapid dissemination of information in modern society has changed the landscape of the First Amendment immensely.
When discussing the rights granted to us in a digital age, I don’t think that there should be a ranking of values. When looking at the bigger picture, I can understand why some people may want to rank these; however, there isn’t one logical rank any of these rights should have. In addition to what rank I may give some of these values, that is because of the impact that they will have on my direct life. But would my rankings be the best options for most people? To me, asking people to rank the importance of their rights also erases the importance of some of them, when they’re all important. Who am I to decide what is best for society as a whole? For this reason, I don’t think that rights should be ranked.