In Egypt, teenagerMenna Abdel Azizused social media to ask for protection after a sexual assault.
She was arrested on a variety of charges, including misusing social media and corrupting family values.
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Quarantines and lockdowns have affected social engagement patterns, as people seek new outlets to connect with others.
Usage rates ofNetflix,Instagram Live, andTikTokhave skyrocketed.
In the US, the media market is ring-fenced by the norms of free speech.
But recently, US President Donald Trump threatened toshut down Twitterafter it added fact-checking links to his tweets.
Both Trump and a Florida congressman have had tweets flagged forglorifying violence.
A pressing question is whether a platform for expression such as TikTok deserves to be regulated.
The Trump administration is considering aTikTok ban.
Their concern is Chinese control of US data, not dance videos.
What, if anything, should be done about user-created content?
Mill would not support their regulation by the government.
In his 1978 essay,The Power of the Powerless, Havel identifies a hidden sphere of youth culture.
During the Arab Spring, graffiti and popular songs were part of the parallel polis.
Similarly, Czechoslovakian dissidents found places for expression in popular culture.
Thus,Charter 77, the political movement which Havel co-founded, was connected to popular music and concerts.
Politically, even music matters.
And in the case ofMinecraft, an in-game uncensored library exists as an archive of censored real-world data.
Thus, a game can have important real-world consequences.
Media analysts see Twitters 500-million daily tweets as an important vehicle of activism.
Teens are using the platform to record protest marches and to make statements about social justice.
Mahraganat, for example, was recentlybannedin Egypt.
Calls to ban TikTok have been raised worldwide and bans have been tried out in India and Indonesia.
Platforms such as TikTok are oriented towards younger users.
The age of users raises valid questions about the privacy and protection of minors.
But outright bans may over-regulate the legitimate expression of young people.
And applyingcybercrimes lawsto regulate user-created content may do the same thing.
