The HBS hosts discuss so-called “cancel culture” and the panic surrounding it.
For some, “canceling” is an essential tool of social justice. For others, it is a threat to free speech. In this episode, we try to identify what cancelation involves (de-platforming, boycotting, public criticism, shaming), what it doesn’t involve (actual silencing), and just how common it is (not common enough to constitute a “culture,” we think). Is cancel culture itself evidence of a moral panic, or is there a cancel panic being manufactured by the canceled?
In 2014, the #MeToo movement gave a name to the (long-practiced) practice of “calling-out” on social media. By 2015, “calling-out” had already evolved to “canceling.” Who are the cancelers? Who are the canceled? And how many different kinds of “mobs” are there on Twitter, anyway?
Check out the links below to ideas/people/etc referenced in this episode:
- Aja Romano, “Why we can’t stop fighting about cancel culture” (Vox, 2019)
- Aja Romano, “The second wave of ‘cancel culture'” (Vox, 2021)
- Lavar Burton on “consequence culture”
- 2020 Republican National Convention, “RESOLUTION UPHOLDING THE FIRST AMENDMENT TO THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA IN THE RESPONSE TO THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC AND THE CANCEL CULTURE MOVEMENT”
- Pacific Legal Foundation, “Coming Together or Breaking Apart: The Case Against Cancel Culture” (panel, 2021)
- Zeesham Aleen on “disinterpretation” and why it seems impossible to engage in good faith debates online (Twitter, 2021)
- Jason Zinoman, “Dave Chappelle Isn’t Canceled. He Just Likes To Talk About It.” (The New York Times, 2021)
