Sunstein was not lying, any more than Hannity was: they both believed that the risk of coronavirus was being overstated. Photograph: Lee Smith/ReutersAny refusal to stamp out such falsehoods constitutes, Sunstein does not shrink from saying, a threat to democracy. In a recent financial statement, though not in this book, Sunstein discloses having done consulting work for Facebook and Apple, so he is perhaps inclined to take a friendly view. If it’s the government’s job to regulate lies, what happens when that power rests in the hands of a lying government? In Sunstein’s world, though, such powers will never be abused (perhaps because of magic democracy), and instead will regulate speech smoothly for everyone’s increased benefit.

Source: The Guardian May 20, 2021 06:22 UTC