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In Rare Interview, Obama Speaks of Freedom of Speech, Youth & Political Polarization

HeadlineDec 27, 2017

President Obama gave a rare radio interview conducted by Prince Harry for the BBC. While President Obama did not mention President Trump by name, Obama spoke forcefully about the importance of free speech and the dangers posed by increasing polarization of news and discourse, particularly online.

Barack Obama: “As a former constitutional lawyer, pretty firm about the merits of free speech, and the question, I think, really has to do with: How do we harness this technology in a way that allows a multiplicity of voices, allows a diversity of views, but doesn’t lead to a Balkanization of our society, but, rather, continues to promote ways of finding common ground? One of the dangers of the internet is, is that people can have entirely different realities. They can be just cocooned in information that reinforces their current biases. One of the things that I think I discovered, even back in 2007, 2008, is a good way of fighting against that is making sure that online communities don’t just stay online.”

In the radio interview, which was taped earlier this year but just released, former President Barack Obama also praised youth across the world.

Barack Obama: “This generation coming up is the most sophisticated, the most tolerant, in many ways, most embracing of diversity, the most tech-savvy, the most entrepreneurial. But they don’t have much faith in existing institutions.”

That’s President Obama speaking in a rare radio interview conducted by Prince Harry for the BBC.

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