Drew Pinsky is a media personality and practicing physician who recently got suspended from YouTube for a week for discussing medical treatments about COVID-19 with other doctors. It can be debated that this is a violation of the First Amendment and his Freedom of Speech but since YouTube is a private company the First Amendment does not apply here. If Dr. Drew was talking on his own platform the government could not stop or censor him because then it would be a violation of the First Amendment. He instead has an issue with YouTube and that they didn't follow their own terms and conditions because he believes he did not violate any of their rules. People often get confused when private companies censor people but that it is a first amendment issue there can still be a grievance against the company. Congress and some states are looking at laws to reign in internet companies that unfairly target users with arbitrary rule. It is still a valid concern that these companies have so much power and influence with little to no oversight.
One of the most important concepts of social media is to engage in the “marketplace of ideas.” This is the idea that the truth will win out when people are allowed to freely engage in conversation. When social media companies do not allow opinions that are different from their own this is not possible. Another one of the Eight Values of Free Expression is to “promote innovation.” Scientific concepts are almost never initially correct or agreed upon. This is even more true in a novel pandemic. The CDC and WHO have changed their guidance multiple times since the pandemic started. This continues even today as more information is found and discussed. If people are not allowed to discuss on the major platforms information will not get out. Even if some information is wrong the truth will eventually come out over time. https://noqreport.com/2021/02/15/dr-drew-on-youtube-censoring-covid-19-truth-do-you-trust-a-23yr-old-computer-coder-with-your-life/
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