Right now the discomfort, if not outright outrage over the Twitter and FB bans tells you that they have long crossed into the space where they are a utility, and that means they need to be subject to extensive regulations, not unlike airlines and telecom companies.
The modern state is based on the exclusive authority of the state to be violent, and the final dispenser of rights.
When a private utility takes away the right to digital expression, which is a pretty fundamental right in the 2020s, one could make a pretty solid case that Trump's free speech rights have been taken away by private individuals or corps without a court ruling on it.
Digital rights are (at the moment) not covered by any of the articles in the constitution, nor is it covered by any UN or multi-lateral conventions, so this event may lead to some changes.
The point here is not about whether it was right or wrong to muzzle Trump & his supporters, but whether a private corp has the same rights as a court to affect individual freedom.
This would of course never happen in China, or if it did you would never hear of it - everything would be censored and protestors will be forcibly reeducated.
The modern state is based on the exclusive authority of the state to be violent, and the final dispenser of rights.
When a private utility takes away the right to digital expression, which is a pretty fundamental right in the 2020s, one could make a pretty solid case that Trump's free speech rights have been taken away by private individuals or corps without a court ruling on it.
Digital rights are (at the moment) not covered by any of the articles in the constitution, nor is it covered by any UN or multi-lateral conventions, so this event may lead to some changes.
The point here is not about whether it was right or wrong to muzzle Trump & his supporters, but whether a private corp has the same rights as a court to affect individual freedom.