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755 points MedadNewman | 1 comments | | HN request time: 0.225s | source
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kelseyfrog ◴[] No.42891543[source]
Tiananmen Square has become a litmus test for Chinese censorship, but in a way, it's revealing. The assumption is that access to this information could influence Chinese public opinion — that if people knew more, something might change. At the very least, there's a belief in that possibility.

Meanwhile, I can ask ChatGPT, "Tell me about the MOVE bombing of 1985," and get a detailed answer, yet nothing changes. Here in the US, we don’t even hold onto the hope that knowing the truth could make a difference. Unlike the Chinese, we're hopeless.

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dylan604 ◴[] No.42891655[source]
As an American, I just asked DDG to "Tell me about the MOVE bombing of 1985,"

I am willing to admit, I was absolutely unaware of this. Is this because of censorship or because of other factors? It's clearly no censored, but quite possibly de-prioritized in coverage. I can say in 1985 I was not well tuned into local let alone national news coverage. I am surprised that in all of the police wrongdoing coverage we have now that this is the first I'm reading about it.

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1. tehjoker ◴[] No.42891904[source]
The American propaganda system is more subtle but very very powerful. Watch this lecture on "Inventing Reality": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9g3kRHo_vpQ

Though over the last year, I admit is has lost some of its subtlety. It was just watching administration officials declare black was white and up was down while real news leaked over social media. The past few years, especially since 2016, have seen a lot of that.