The Changing Meaning of Freedom in Our Age

The concepts of freedom and captivity have always been significant for humanity throughout history. Humans who fight to be free have, at the same time, enslaved their enemies. This creates a dramatic contradiction.

Freedom refers to the state in which individuals, communities, or societies possess independence, autonomy, and the ability to make their own decisions under certain conditions. Freedom can be interpreted in many different fields, including human rights, as well as political, social, economic, or cultural contexts.

We can express these as individual freedom, political freedom, economic freedom, social freedom, freedom of religion and belief, freedom of the press and expression, as well as equality and justice. The concept of freedom is shaped by the values, cultures, and political systems of societies and can receive different interpretations in different societies. It is based on important principles such as respect for the human rights of individuals and communities and commitment to democratic values. In other words, one person's freedom ends where another's begins.

As leaders who waged great struggles to achieve the freedom of themselves and their societies, Atatürk, "The more a nation is devoted to its freedom and independence, the more honorable and respectful of human rights its members will be," by saying this, Mahatma Gandhi, "Freedom is not just a right recognized by a state, but also a value that a person carries within themselves," and Nelson Mandela also "Freedom is a fundamental part of human nature, and people have the right to attain their freedom," they said, making similar points.  

Voltaire, on the other hand, says, "People are free as long as they think, and they will remain free as long as they continue to think."

Throughout history, the concept of freedom—freedom to live, freedom to travel, freedom to think, and freedom of speech, or in other words, the freedom to express and disseminate one's thoughts—has been gained step by step, but it has taken on a new form in today's technological world. We can define this as the "freedom to access information." To elaborate, if we, as humans, can easily access all the information we need to make the right decisions and make ourselves and those around us happy, without restrictions, then we can better understand ourselves and our environment and achieve true freedom.

As we know, communication and information technologies, which have developed rapidly in this century in particular, have provided great conveniences in terms of accessing information. Thanks to the internet and social media, it has become possible to receive news from all over the world. However, just as every convenience brings its own problems, here too we encounter disinformation and misinformation. It is possible to briefly define disinformation as false, intentionally distorted news, and misinformation as unintentional, erroneous news.

Today, we see through various examples around the world that such news is spread specifically for various political purposes and that individuals and societies are significantly affected by them. Here, it is of great importance that the law intervenes in the context of protecting freedoms and is updated in accordance with changing technology and digital culture. The responsibility that falls on us as individuals is to be aware of all these transformations and, alongside our curiosity to obtain information, not to abandon our skepticism.

We must research the authenticity of a news story we read, or a video or photograph we see. If we are lazy and that news contains disinformation, what we learn can mislead us and make us slaves.