Steemit Vs. Facebook: Where Can You Truly Find the Freedom of Expression at the Moment?

In most modern democracies, the freedom of expression is a fundamental human right. Freedom of expression gives every citizen the right to express their opinions, beliefs and ideas (through speech or writings) without any harassment, as long as such expressions are incapable of causing harm to the reputation of any other man or the state - as the case may be.

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Personally, I believe that our humanity is largely dependent upon how much we are able to freely express ourselves. This is why it is not surprising to find that our generation is enthralled by the dance steps of the social media and the internet. These amazing platforms accommodate divergent opinions and ideas. And that, frankly, ought to strengthen our freedom of expression and humanity. However, the big question arises:

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Does Social Network Giant like Facebook Guarantee Freedom of Expression?

My answer is simple and straightforward, yes. Facebook does. Facebook gives everyone an equal opportunity to express themselves without any fear of sanction or intimidation provided such expressions, of course, do not cause harm to the reputation of any other person or entity.

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At least, today, there are millions of posts and comments on Facebook and even Twitter that scorn world leaders (and perhaps the owners of the sites themselves). Yet, such posts remain untouched by the central authorities because the freedom of expression is only strengthen when it accommodates divergent and conflicting opinions.

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Does Our Own Steemit Guarantee Freedom of Expression?

The answer, I am sorry to break your heart, is no. Although our own Steemit parades itself as a decentralized social network and blogging site, it would appear that users are not free to express conflicting opinions without severe consequences or intimidation.

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""All animals are equal but some are more equal than others."

• George Orwell, Animal Farm.

The above quote is not only true in George Orwell's Animal Farm, I fear it is also true on Steemit at the moment. The whales, those who hold huge Steem powers, are capable of flagging, at the slightest provocation, any post into oblivion. This is a blatant violation of the freedom of expression. At best, flagging a man is like taking away the microphone from him because you do not like his voice. It is unfair and unjust. Everyone has a right to be heard.

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Conclusion

At the moment, it appears that Facebook offers more room for freedom of expression than Steemit. And, of course, this is not a good competitive advantage for our young and beloved Steemit which has just over a million registered accounts. The truth is that Steemit needs to accommodate divergent views if we must go far and even overthrow Facebook.

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Do not misunderstand me. I do not suggest that flagging should be stopped on Steemit, as that in itself is another blow to the scared freedom of expression. The flaggers also have a right to express themselves. What then is the way forward? Flagging should not be determined by SP, it should be determined by the numbers of votes either for or against (of course excluding votes from bots).

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Therefore, if a post has a greater number of downvotes than upvotes, the posts can then be taken down together with its rewards. Otherwise, the post should be allowed to remain as long as the downvotes are less than the upvotes. This will prevent tyranny and the bullish culture that we are already seeing on Steemit.

cc: @ned

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SUPPORT CORNER

Kindly follow the peerless vocabulary lessons delivered by @majes.tytyty and get rewarded with some upvotes for your participation.

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Are you a minnow and you're already thinking of giving up on Steemit? Please don't quit. Kindly follow @Steemitcentral and use the steemitcentral tag in your posts to get some upvotes. Join @Steemitcentral on Discord

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I am @gandhibaba, the young man who goes about carrying his magical pen, not his gun, in his pockets.

Gif courtesy of @artzanolino

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