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The dark arts: Cancel culture & freedom of speech

03 February 2021 / Nicholas Dobson
Issue: 7919 / Categories: Features , Human rights , Technology
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Nicholas Dobson navigates the murky world of free speech & cancel culture

Back in 1971 Coca-Cola ran a TV advertisement offering universal harmony in a bottle of Coke. All together now: ‘I‘d like to teach the world to sing/In perfect harmony/I’d like to buy the world a Coke/And keep it company.’ Some years later the internet was able to offer universal connectivity, if not always harmony.

But, as the COVID-19 lockdown demonstrated, the internet can be a force for good. Since 23 March 2020 when the stop whistle blew on normal life, it’s been the internet that’s kept people and businesses connected, enabled online shopping, afforded smooth remote working and video connectivity for many and kept life’s essentials ticking. The internet has also developed into an astonishingly rich and deep mine of information on all aspects of the human condition.

But, of course, in every Eden lurks a serpent. And once again the oily snake is human nature itself. For if an invention can do good, it

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Muckle LLP—Rachael Chapman

Muckle LLP—Rachael Chapman

Sports, education and charities practice welcomes senior associate

Ellisons—Carla Jones

Ellisons—Carla Jones

Partner and head of commercial litigation joins in Chelmsford

Freeths—Louise Mahon

Freeths—Louise Mahon

Firm strengthens Glasgow corporate practice with partner hire

NEWS
One in five in-house lawyers suffer ‘high’ or ‘severe’ work-related stress, according to a report by global legal body, the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC)
The Legal Ombudsman’s (LeO’s) plea for a budget increase has been rejected by the Law Society and accepted only ‘with reluctance’ by conveyancers
Overcrowded prisons, mental health hospitals and immigration centres are failing to meet international and domestic human rights standards, the National Preventive Mechanism (NPM) has warned
Two speedier and more streamlined qualification routes have been launched for probate and conveyancing professionals
Workplace stress was a contributing factor in almost one in eight cases before the employment tribunal last year, indicating its endemic grip on the UK workplace
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