Novara Media Downstream: China, AI and the West’s Free Speech Crackdown w/ Ai Weiwei
Feb 2, 2026
Ai Weiwei, Chinese contemporary artist and dissident known for confronting censorship and surveillance. He talks about Western crackdowns on pro‑Palestine speech, corporate control of online expression and platforms like TikTok. He explores pervasive surveillance, art as a form of journalism, and whether AI dilutes creativity.
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Corporate Platforms Act Like Censors
- Corporate platforms exert censorship comparable to authoritarian states by shaping narratives and youth behaviour.
- Ai Weiwei warns platform owners control recommendation algorithms to influence public thought and politics.
Privacy Loss Reshapes Human Behaviour
- Ubiquitous surveillance has stripped modern privacy so people behave as if they are exposed.
- Ai Weiwei says this erosion of private space changes psychology and reduces the room to think or make mistakes.
Punish Few To Silence Many
- Authoritarian regimes use public punishment of a few to induce widespread self-censorship.
- Ai Weiwei illustrates this with his father's exile and how targeting individuals silences entire communities.
