<
https://www.techdirt.com/2026/03/31/free-speech-experts-jonathan-haidts-moral-panic-is-as-old-as-democracy-itself/>
"We’ve been saying for years now that Jonathan Haidt’s crusade against social
media and kids is a moral panic dressed up in academic robes, and that the
evidence simply does not support the sweeping claims he’s been making. A new
piece in the
Wall Street Journal by Jacob Mchangama and Jeff Kosseff drives
that point home with a framing that cuts straight to the absurdity of it all:
this fear of new ideas “corrupting the youth” is literally as old as democracy
itself.
In 399 BCE, Socrates was put on trial before a jury of some 500 of his
fellow Athenians. The indictment accused him of impiety and added, “Socrates
is…also guilty of corrupting the youth.” Despite the Athenian democracy’s
commitment to free and equal speech, Socrates was found guilty and sentenced
to death.
Two and a half millennia later, democracies are still deeply concerned about
dangerous ideas corrupting the youth. This time, the target isn’t dangerous
philosophy but an increase in teen mental-health issues blamed on social
media."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
