We need to talk

[4bonhoffer]

You cannot yell fire in a theatre. If a newspaper knowingly prints false information about someone they can be sued for libel.
Yet, on the internet anyone can say whatever they want no matter how damaging or dangerous. Look where this has gotten us. I know there’s no easy answer. Free speech should be imperative . Maybe it’s far too late, but if we should return to a semblance of normality people who are far smarter than I am need to come up with some ideas and implement them.
Throwing up our arms and saying there’s just no way to regulate speech that causes damage is far beyond just being lazy.
Look at where this country, planet is at.
I wish there was a magical answer.I don’t have any great advice. I do know that ignoring it has not been working.

[J_William_Ryan]

1. "...anyone can say whatever they want no matter how damaging or dangerous."

It was never the intent of the Framers that dangerous, reckless, irresponsible speech in the context of private society go unchecked, unregulated, or unchallenged.

The First Amendment places limits and restrictions only on government concerning the regulation of speech, not private citizens or private entities.

It was the intent of the Framers that speech be regulated by private citizens absent interference by government or the courts – in essence, the Framers would approve of ‘cancel culture,’ where dangerous, offensive, or inappropriate speech would be regulated or preempted by private citizens through protests, boycotts, and other opposition methods.

This why conservatives are wrong about ‘cancel culture’ and ‘woke’ – it wrongfully takes from private citizens their right and responsibility to regulate speech, determining through private consensus what speech is appropriate and what speech is not.

[Groundhawg]

2. Yes you can yell fire in a theater.

[usonian]

3. Section 230 of the Communications (in)Decency Act

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Section_230
This opened the gates of hell, which poured spew and hate onto the internet.
TO BE SPECIFIC:
obscene, lewd, lascivious, filthy, excessively violent, harassing, or otherwise objectionable
And that's THE LAW.
Do you want to talk about "privilege"?
There it is.

No provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider.

— Section 230 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. § 230), as added Pub. L. 104–104, title V, § 509

Section 230(c)(2) further provides "Good Samaritan" protection from civil liability for operators of interactive computer services in the voluntary good faith removal or moderation of third-party material the operator "considers to be obscene, lewd, lascivious, filthy, excessively violent, harassing, or otherwise objectionable, whether or not such material is constitutionally protected."