Losing Our Voice to the Algorithm

The rise of Algospeak

For many years, I’ve relied heavily and quite successfully on numerous social media outlets to share ideas and information as well as engage in dialogue with literally thousands of followers.

I never expected that I would have to choose my words carefully or use cyphers for fear of censorship. I’m fighting the unwinnable battle of trying to outwit the social media police – the non-human language bandits who are scrutinizing my messages.

I’ve been hearing that I am not alone. Many others are finding their social media posts have been blocked or they are forced into “Facebook Jail” with no explanation. I decided to put on my Sherlock Holmes deerstalker cap and investigate. That’s when I found out that we unknowingly were at war with the language police!

As a sex and relationship therapist who deals every day with clients’ repressed identities, shame, guilt and projections, what disturbs me about this algorithmic censorship is having to use workaround words such as emojis and codes. My entire career has been dedicated to helping people face their issues honestly and openly, and talk about them freely in a language that clearly and accurately describes their feelings and situation.

And while I am asking my clients to speak freely, here come the robots with the “authorized” ability to flag content and remove it because it violates their own personal and prejudiced norms.

My posts are not designed as therapy; and I don’t use them as a stage to disseminate inappropriate messages. My posts are meant to spark questions, comments and insights, which can be a real learning experience for some, or an “ah hah” moment for others. I also am aware that not all of my messages will be accepted positively, but that is why we should have the freedom to talk candidly and share our reactions and responses without fear of censorship.

Censorship on social platforms doesn’t just mangle language; it deepens shame, stifles authenticity, and undermines the very healing many users seek.

Subsequently, content creators like me now are forced to listen to our “inner censor voice” before we speak. I am questioning myself – something I never had to do before. Is this a safe message or will it feed the censor police? Sometimes, it’s not easy to convey my thoughts because replacing them with “safe” words, convolutes what I want to say. I am an educator, and I want to be fully present and accurate, but this kind of self-censorship diminishes my integrity, I feel. The result: more generic, less authentic and less compelling content. This is not who I am and what my followers expect.

I am a certified sexual health therapist with a PhD, and I find myself using childlike words to avoid censorship. And of course, my followers now are criticizing me for my elementary word choices. The action of sanitizing speech has to stop! I wish I had a solution; I will continue to hope that in the very near future, we all can speak openly and honestly and use the words that accurately describe what we want to express.