If Ottawa wanted an adviser who would reassure Canadians that online safety rules will be narrow, fair, and politically neutral, Farber was the wrong pick. There is another reason this appointment lands badly. It tells Canadians that the federal government still sees online speech mainly through the lens of activist advocacy, not constitutional restraint.
The online world is ugly at times. Real hatred exists. Criminal harassment exists. Child exploitation exists. Threats exist. Nobody seriously denies that. Reappointing Farber does not settle that debate. It does signal which side of it Ottawa feels most comfortable hearing from.
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