The Blair Witch Project: Former British Prime Minister Calls for Global Censorship

Written by Jonathan Turley,

In the 1999 cult classic The Blair Witch Projecta character tells his friends “I could help you, but I’d rather stand here and record it.” Advocates of freedom of speech often feel that other citizens have become passive spectators while an anti-freedom of speech movement is growing around us, threatening our “indispensable right.”

One of the most notorious figures in this movement is former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who has long been the smiling face of censorship. As leader of the Labour Party, Blair implemented some of the first crackdowns on freedom of speech in the UK, and is now calling for global censorship to expand these efforts.

In an interview on LBC Radio, Blair stated:

“The world will have to unite and agree on some rules surrounding social media platforms. It’s not just the way people can stir up hostility and hatred, but I think… the impact on young people, especially if they have access to mobile phones at a very young age, They read a lot of things and receive a lot of things that really confuse their minds in a big way.“

We recently discussed how the UK is already using the recent riots to crack down harder on people with opposing or ‘toxic’ views.

I have been writing for years about the decline in freedom of speech in the UK and the continuing stream of arrests.

A man was convicted of sending a drunken tweet referencing dead soldiers. Another was arrested for an anti-police T-shirt. Another was arrested for calling his ex-girlfriend’s Irish boyfriend a “leprechaun.” Yet another was arrested for singing “Kung Fu Fighting.” A teenager was arrested for protesting outside a Scientology center with a sign calling the religion a “cult.”

Last year, Nicholas Brock, 52, was convicted of a thoughtcrime in Maidenhead, Berkshire. The neo-Nazi was jailed for four years for what the court called his “toxic ideology”, based on the contents of the home he shared with his mother in Maidenhead, Berkshire.

While most of us find Brock’s views repugnant and hateful, they were confined to his head and his chambers. Yet Judge Peter Lodder QC dismissed concerns about freedom of speech or thought with a truly Orwellian statement: “I am not condemning you for your political views, but the extremity of those views affects the assessment of dangerousness.”

Lodder criticized Brock for his Nazi and other hateful values:

“(i)t is clear that you are a far-right extremist, your enthusiasm for this repugnant and toxic ideology is demonstrated by the graphic and racist iconography that you have studied and that you appear to share with others…”

Even though Lodder admitted that the suspect was elderly, had limited mobility and that there was “no evidence of transmission to others,” he still sent him to prison for adhering to extremist views.

Following the sentencing, Detective Chief Inspector Kath Barnes, head of the South East Counter Terrorism Branch (CTPSE), warned others that he was going to prison because he “demonstrated a clear right-wing ideology through the evidence seized from his assets during the investigation….We are committed to tackling all forms of toxic ideology that could threaten public safety and security.”

Blair’s views are shared by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, who declared:

“Misinformation is dangerous. Social media is good, but also bad when people use it in a way that can cause a riot, threat, intimidation. suggesting that we should attack someone is not acceptable. What we need to do is actually correct what is there, otherwise I think the government needs to think long and hard about what they are going to do with social media and what they are going to push through parliament as a bill.

“I believe it should be broadly supported. It doesn’t matter what country you’re in. The fact is that disinformation is dangerous and there should be no misinformation, threats or intimidation on social media platforms.”

Like the attempt in Brazil to block X entirely for refusing to censor political opponents of the government, Blair’s call for global censorship is the movement’s next step.

It is notable that Musk bought Twitter after Hillary Clinton called on European officials to force him to censor American citizens under the infamous Digital Services Act (DSA). Recently, Democratic leaders such as Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison praised Brazil for taking action to deny citizens access to unfettered news sources.

Interviews like the one with Tony Blair are not just to intimidate or frighten others. They reflect an extensive campaign by our political elite to enforce censorship on a national and transnational scale. If you think the latest Blair Witch Project is just a scary production, you haven’t been paying attention.

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Jonathan Turley is Shapiro Professor of Public Interest Law at George Washington University and author of “The Indispensable Right: Free Speech in an Age of Rage.”