Unionist Ostermann's contributions are barred by entity X.
In a recent development, a controversial article titled "The Police's Perspective," published as a guest contribution by our publishing house, has been removed from the online platform X in Germany. The article, penned by Manuel Ostermann, a police union representative, discusses a future Germany dominated by Islam in 2050.
The removal of the post was not due to a direct state order, but because it was reported to X and the X support team decided to delete the post. This action was taken in accordance with the NetzDG law, which requires large platform providers in Germany, such as X, to proactively remove potentially criminal content from their platforms to avoid high fines or service shutdown.
The incident highlights the imperfections of legislation regarding expressions of opinion on social media and its interpretation by platform operators. It underscores the importance of a free and independent press, as the article can still be read online, as it was published by our publishing house.
Interestingly, users are sharing screenshots of the article on X, which have not been suppressed so far, potentially increasing its reach (Streisand effect). Despite this, there are no search results providing information on which platform deleted Manuel Ostermann's post or the reason why it was deleted.
The X help page explains that posts are removed as a reaction to reports through their support notification channels. However, the specific case of the removed article is not detailed on the help page. X has a philosophy of avoiding suppression of posts in the network, but in this case, the post was removed due to a report.
This situation also sheds light on the challenges posed by large online platforms like Google and Facebook to the publishing industry, potentially endangering democracy. As Elon Musk, the owner of X, advocates nearly unrestricted free speech and has criticized state interference in freedom of expression, this incident sparks a debate about the balance between law and freedom of speech in the digital age.
Two articles discussing this topic are available: "How 'Dark Tech' is destroying the internet: After reading this book, you'll be floored" and "Interview: 'I still want to provoke democratic discourse'". These articles provide further insight into the complexities of regulating online content and the importance of upholding free speech in a democratic society.
