More than 200 Substack authors asked the platform to explain why itâs âplatforming and monetizing Nazis,â and now they have an answer straight from co-founder Hamish McKenzie:
I just want to make it clear that we donât like Nazis eitherâwe wish no-one held those views. But some people do hold those and other extreme views. Given that, we donât think that censorship (including through demonetizing publications) makes the problem go awayâin fact, it makes it worse.
While McKenzie offers no evidence to back these ideas, this tracks with the companyâs previous stance on taking a hands-off approach to moderation. In April, Substack CEO Chris Best appeared on the Decoder podcast and refused to answer moderation questions. âWeâre not going to get into specific âwould you or wonât youâ content moderation questionsâ over the issue of overt racism being published on the platform, Best said. McKenzie followed up later with a similar statement to the one today, saying âwe donât like or condone bigotry in any form.â
Hearing some one out and not changing your viewpoint after the conversation, doesnât make you one of them. đ
Thing is, weâve heard out the nazis before. We donât need to do that anymore.
I like Michael Okudaâs take on this:
The Paradox of Tolerance disappears if you look at tolerance, NOT as a moral standard, but as a social contract. If someone does not abide by the terms of the contract, they are not covered by it. In other words, the intolerant arenât deserving of your tolerance.
Personally, I think thereâs some value in allowing the Nazis to publicly self-identify, because then we know who the Nazis are. We (society) donât need to tolerate what they say just to prove that weâre tolerant, but itâs probably useful to know who they are, and for them to volunteer that information. Then we respond with public ridicule and name-and-shame.
Also, that doesnât require that a privately owned business (e.g. substack) should provide a platform for Nazi bullshit.
My viewpoint is that I dont have any obligation to âhear outâ a nazi. And neither does anyone else. GTFO with this âeven nazis should be given a fair shakeâ shit.
When it comes to listening to hate speech and not condoning it outrright then and there, even if you donât explicitly support it, it does make you complicit, and it shows youâre willing to turn a blind eye to it, and that speaks negatively to your character.
Donât be a Nazi sympathizer, donât let them off the hook, donât let them spread their hate and lies. You disagree with Nazism? Then donât give it even an inch to spread. Kill it in the cradle.
