Self-Censorship

I have been asked several times why I started the Cedar Valley Sentinel (formerly i84005) site. So here is my Cedar Valley Sentinel (formerly i84005) manifesto, and the reason why I started Cedar Valley Sentinel (formerly i84005). The main reason is that I, as an individual, could not find news and information for the Eagle Mountain area, without having to wade through slow sites that push ads and obvious agendas onto their readers. To me, information should be free, and readily available. I agree with James Madison, in a letter he wrote to W.T. Barry in 1822, he wrote, “A popular Government, without popular information, or the means of acquiring it, is but a Prologue to a Farce or a Tragedy; or, perhaps both. Knowledge will forever govern ignorance: And a people who mean to be their own Governors, must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives.”

Knowledge is indeed power. The more knowledge the general residents of Eagle Mountain posses, the greater their ability to govern themselves correctly, and to change the course of action they see unfit. That is true of all groups of people. If people are unaware, or do not have knowledge about what is happening, there is no way they can change it or influence the outcome. This knowledge needs to be based on Truth, or it loses its power. That Truth needs to be a light to everyone, and should not be hidden or obscured from people. I don’t believe that people are intentionally hiding the Truth in Eagle Mountain, or are trying to suppress general knowledge to the residents. I do know that at times knowledge is hard to find, and to access. The purpose of this site is to make that knowledge available to anyone who wants to find it, and to make it available in an easy to use, single location.

I have been noticing a trend in the media and in the press over the years. Cedar Valley Sentinel (formerly i84005) also wants to fight this trend. The trend, as I see it, is self-censorship on the part of the reporter to not offend anyone in a minority group(s). I am sorry, but Truth is Truth. The event happened, or it did not happen. And pretending that the knowledge does not exist, or that the truth did not happen does not change the fact that it did.

Let me elaborate a little more on this thought process. I recently read an article on The Weekly Standard that was entitled, “Sensitivity or Self-Censorship“. The article was geared towards the writers of fiction, but I believe it also applies to those who write the news articles and to those who they share that Truth with. It opens up with a quote from Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451

Now let’s take up the minorities in our civilization, shall we? Bigger the population, the more minorities. Don’t step on the toes of the dog-lovers, the cat-lovers, doctors, lawyers, merchants, chiefs, Mormons, Baptists, Unitarians, second-generation Chinese, Swedes, Italians, Germans, Texans, Brooklynites, Irishmen, people from Oregon or Mexico. The people in this book, this play, this TV serial are not meant to represent any actual painters, cartographers, mechanics anywhere. The bigger your market, Montag, the less you handle controversy, remember that!
…
Authors, full of evil thoughts, lock up your typewriters. They did.
…
There you have it, Montag. It didn’t come from the Government down. There was no dictum, no declaration, no censorship, to start with, no!

The article continues to discuss how fiction writers are now including Sensitivity Readers to their pool of editors. The Sensitivity Readers job is to read the books, prior to publishing, and to give the author the viewpoint of the minority. The goal is to have the author change the work of fiction so that it does not create any issues with the now ever growing number of minorities. There are a lot of examples of recent movies, books, and articles that a minority has had a problem with and has forced the work to be changed. I would also surmise that there are a lot of works that have never been created for the same reason, and are self-censored before the idea matures.

Self-censorship is the act of censoring or classifying one’s own blog, book, film, or other forms of media. This is done out of fear of, or deference to, the sensibilities or preferences (actual or perceived) of others and without overt pressure from any specific party or institution of authority. Self-censorship is often practiced by film producers, film directors, publishers, news anchors, journalists, musicians, and other kinds of authors including individuals who use social media.

I at times have found myself doing this self-censorship. I find myself thinking that I should word something a certain way, or even leave it out, because it would cause problems or issues with a certain individuals or group(s) of people. We have become a society where we feel like we need to avoid hard questions, hard topics, or the wrath of a minority group. And to be honest, a lot of times I think that wrath is imagined, and not real. We are afraid to share, post, or disseminate information because we believe it would cause a problem. This in essence is self-censorship. If the information is there, and it is accurate, it should be shared, even if you believe, or know that it will cause sensitivity issues with individuals or a group of people.

I also believe that this process of self-censorship is used to actually enforce an unofficial censorship. Not a government, or media induced censorship, but a societal censorship. For example, if someone complains about a subject enough, eventually people will avoid that topic to avoid the conflict. If the person shouts loud enough, the author will eventually say to themselves that it is not worth writing the work. In essence, the loud minority has caused the author to self-censor themselves. Everyone has been part of this society implemented self-censorship. If I ask you what the two topics are that you should avoid at the dinner table, your answer will be “Religion and Politics.” In essence that is a form of society enforced self-censorship. We self-censor those topics, when in essence they are two of the most important topics and areas of knowledge that can be shared.

But it should also be noted, that if you think of self-censoring, you should look into the reasons why you feel you should self-censor. If you are thinking about not publishing something because it is hurtful to someone in a personal nature, or is being written for the purpose of spite, or the agenda is to harm someone, then you probably should self-censor it. But if the reason you are thinking about self-censoring is because you feel it is a sensitive subject and would cause problems with an individual or group the the purpose of the work is to disseminate knowledge and information, then it should not be self-censored.

I will try to avoid self-censor. We will post the news, and data that can be verified to be the truth. But my view of Eagle Mountain is limited. I live on only one road, and only see a portion of the city. I am also only aware of a very small portion of activities in Eagle Mountain. If Cedar Valley Sentinel (formerly i84005) is to include viewpoints from all areas in Eagle Mountain, then I will need help. Everyone has their own expertise, and mine are in specific areas. I need others that have the same goal, of sharing knowledge, to share their works to Cedar Valley Sentinel (formerly i84005). Please, take up the pen, and help share your knowledge that will benefit other Eagle Mountain residents. Don’t self-censor yourself because of perceived issues that your work may cause. If it is the Truth, and can be verified, lets share it with other residents.

There is also another side to self-censorship. You should also look at the motive for it. You should avoid publishing, and disseminating information for the sole purpose of inflaming, or causing contention. The goal should always be to inform and share knowledge. If you are just trying to click bait, or cause a stir, then the emotional effect will remove any benefit to the knowledge to the reader.