The Republican Party’s Misappropriation of ‘Free Speech’ Undermines American Democracy

Following the insurrection at the US Capitol on 6 January, several Republican lawmakers accused the press and social media companies of censorship and attempting to ‘cancel’ conservative voices. During Trump’s impeachment proceedings in the House of Representatives the following week, Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene gave a nationally televised speech in the House Chamber wearing a face mask that said ‘Censored’. These recent examples exemplify a broader pattern that precedes the Trump era, in which Republicans crafted and embraced a false narrative that the press and social media platforms are biased against conservative voices. Both government and private actors have fomented claims of anti-conservative bias directed to the party’s base, often using the very actors they malign to do so, including prominent newspapers, Twitter, and Facebook.