Russell Broadbent here, Member for Monash.
A recent poll by the Institute of Public Affairs found that two thirds of Australians are concerned that Labor’s mis and disinformation laws will be used by the government for political purposes.
As Robert Menzies pondered some 80 years ago –‘…Why is this freedom of speech and of thought of real importance to humanity? The answer is that what appears to be today’s truth is frequently tomorrow’s error. There is nothing absolute about the truth. It is elusive…Hence, if truth is to emerge and in the long run be triumphant, the process of free debate – the untrammelled clash of opinion – must go on'.
Misinformation is weaponised daily by those who want you to comply with their idea of how something should be. You only have to listen to the ABC’s completely one-sided commentary about Trump over the past few weeks!
Whatever happened to healthy discourse? Constructive and respectful debates? Isn’t that how we come to a place of trust, of fairness, of justice?
As Menzies said: There are…temptations towards political censorship, or what is just as bad, politically conscious censorship.
I hope that’s not the path that our nation is heading down.
