I read that the official Mastodon instance of the Swiss government will be closing down.

They say there are few active users, low engagement, and minimal interaction, which seems quite plausible. Additionally, they claim that "on platforms like X or Instagram, the Federal Council and the Federal Administration have many more followers." I believe that too, of course.

However, I do not agree with their decision. I think a government shouldn’t be overly concerned about follower counts and interactions, but rather about providing free, autonomous communication that is independent of third-party companies. In my view, a government shouldn’t operate like a business focused on "numbers."

Still, I appreciate their experiment - many governments, like the Italian one, haven’t even tried.

Regarding costs and management effort: an instance with 5 users and 3,500 followers (numbers provided by them) can run on a VPS for €3 a month and doesn't require heavy moderation. The cost for them is nearly zero. Yet, the freedom of information and discussion, especially for a Neutral Country, should always be a priority.

I believe that maintaining control over one’s information channels is crucial, especially in today's world. But, I fear that decision-makers only consider the numbers, which often favor the flashiest - but worse - solutions.

Encouraging citizens to use closed platforms is, in my opinion, a wrong choice.

Thanks to the Swiss government for at least giving it a shot.

admin.ch/gov/it/pagina-inizial…

#Mastodon #FreedomOfSpeech #Switzerland #Fediverse #SocialNetworks

In this day and age, we need more tolerance and less hate.

We fight for #Privacy and #FreedomOfSpeech for everyone - no matter the political, religious or sexual background.

We hope you respect that - just like we respect your privacy. 🔒

Together we are building a better web! 💪

This is the conversation on Twitter that made us toot this: twitter.com/TutaPrivacy/status…

Last week we fell for a stupid #Gmail hoax.

We'd like to apologize for sharing this image without fact checking first.

Particularly with the rise of #AI it's important that we all stay vigilant & not fall for #FakeNews.

#FreedomOfSpeech matters, but so does the #truth.

The #KOSA Bill threatens to censor online content under the guise of trying to "protect the children". 🤔

The bill's vague language opens the door to dangerous legal interpretations that will do more to push censorship on the American public than protect the nation's youth. 🚫

Contact your senators and make your voice heard against this attack on free speech! 👇 tuta.com/blog/kosa-threatens-f…

#freedomofspeech #usa #censorship #lgbtq #senate

It's #FreeSpeechWeek - but is there reason to celebrate? With freedom of speech under fire from increasing surveillance around the globe our basic human rights - the right to privacy and the right to freedom of expression - are trampled upon in too many ways.

The promise of the free and open internet has failed and in its place a system of chilling effects has been instituted.

Read more: 👇
tutanota.com/blog/free-speech-…

#FreeSpeech #FreeSpeechMatters #freedomofspeech

Free Speech is Under Fire With the Rise in Global Surveillance

It's Free Speech Week but the lookout for freedom of speech on a global level couldn't be much worse.

^Tutanota