Really, Is Online Content And Books Banned In The US?

The short answer is YES. United States authorities and organizations can and have banned books and certain online content. Though there are some online content and books banned in the US, non-democratic countries are much worse. Authoritarian governments censor routinely both online content and even burn books.

The United States is more tolerant in regard to banning content than most governments, especially authoritarian governments. The U.S. has the First Amendment of the United States Constitution that protects the right to freedom of religion and freedom of expression from government interference. Though freedom of speech is guaranteed, the U.S. courts over the years have established some limitations based on community standards. Also, authorities do ban some content associated with illegal activities. Also, social media platforms will ban misleading information and fake news.

What Books and Content Can Be Banned in the United States?

1. Violation of Community Standards – Explicit or Offensive Content. A Government entity such as a school board or library can ban books deemed to be sexually explicit, have offensive language, or unsuited for a certain age group. These types of content bans are likely to withstand a court challenge. See THE FIRST AMENDMENT ENCYCLOPEDIA and Wikipedia for more on book banning in the United States based on community standards.
2. Content Associated With Illegal Activity.   Books as well as web sites can be banned for sensitive national security content, threats of violence, libel, and copyright infringement. With the advent of the web, internet content can also be banned for fraud, spam, and “dark web” crimes. Examples of dark web crimes include murder for hire, extortion, illegal drug sales, illegal arms sales, sex trafficking, terrorism, and child pornography.
3. Violates Social Media Terms of Service – False Information / Fake News. Social Media platforms routinely ban what they deem misleading content and conspiracy theories. In the U.S., banned misleading social media content can include content about public health, voting, politics, and manipulated media. See Consumer Report’s Social Media Misinformation Policies for more on where sites like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, Pinterest, Reddit, Snapchat, WhatsApp, and TikTok ban misleading content.

For more information from Unvarnished Facts, see articles on bias, freedom, and government.