Toby Young describes his own 2018 cancellation, a survey of Free Speech Union cases showing high psychological harm, and why he fears Andy Burnham’s new unit to tackle disinformation will increase scrutiny and penalties for ordinary speech.
Toby Young links his own 2018 cancellation to acute stress: rapid weight loss, public humiliation, job losses and lasting sensory changes.
Police and civil-rights data cited: 34–40 arrests per day for speech-related offences, about 65 'non-crime hate incidents' logged daily, and only roughly 20% of accused are convicted.
Toby Young argues that cancel culture causes serious psychological harm and warns that a new government unit to fight disinformation will expand surveillance of everyday speech. He draws on his own 2018 cancellation, a survey of people helped by the Free Speech Union, and recent policing figures to explain why he views the National Centre for Information Defence as a domestic threat to free expression.
What the Free Speech Union survey found
Young collaborated with clinical psychologists Carole Sherwood and Andrew MacLeod on a survey of 255 people the FSU assisted. Reported results: 80% said their mental health was adversely affected by cancellation, 27% reported needing medication, and 20% fell into the most severe depression category. Young presents these numbers to connect cancellation with measurable psychological harm among people who sought FSU support.
Young's personal cancellation experience
On the new National Centre for Information Defence
Young references a recent speech by Prime Minister Andy Burnham to the United Nations announcing a new surveillance unit intended to "stem the poisonous tide" of disinformation. Young labels that unit Labour's 'Ministry of Truth' and says it brings the total number of Whitehall bodies monitoring speech to ten. He warns ordinary remarks on topics such as immigration or drag events could lead to criminal or workplace discipline.
Young points to extreme outcomes as well, mentioning the case of Cambridge professor Jason Arday, described here as an example where exposure and reputational collapse preceded suicide. Young frames this as an illustration of cancellation's potential to escalate into life-threatening outcomes.
If Young's account reflects broader patterns, people who post controversial opinions online may face rapid escalation: public shaming, professional consequences, police attention, and ongoing mental-health effects even when no conviction follows. Young argues that additional government monitoring will likely increase the frequency and severity of those outcomes for ordinary citizens.
Young's piece combines personal testimony, a small targeted survey, and national policing figures to build a case that cancellation causes real harm and that a new government unit on disinformation could exacerbate surveillance of domestic speech. He urges readers to consider those trade-offs when assessing measures aimed at countering disinformation.
Free speech gimp Toby Young has been having a go at Andy Burnham in the Daily Mail. Nothing to see here, you might reasonably assume. Except for this particular column the Youngmeister used it to talk about being ‘cancelled’ and why the toll it took on him make it fearful of Burnham’s proposed National Centre […] The p
By Michael Rainsborough, Daily Sceptic. (Image: Public Domain via Wiki Commons) How many Ministries of Truth does one country need? With Andy Burnham announcing yet another, Prof Michael Rainsborough points out that Britain’s “narratives of decline” arise because the country is, in fact, declining. In previous essays I
Fourteen years ago, Twitter was the fastest, funniest game on the web. Now I’ve been driven out by so-called ‘online activists’. The only answer is to unplug and try this instead God, I love social media! I cannot believe my exquisite luck – to exist in a time when it was invented! Bliss it is in this dawn to be @live!
Once upon a time, displaying the bloodied head of a U.S. president could get you canceled. And it did. This was before cancel culture was a thing, a time when Americans had a shared sense of decency and found obviously heinous acts ... heinous. Earlier this year, 'Saturday Night Live’s' Weekend Update teased a Trump as
Things got super intense.
Loading more related stories...
Open the app view to save this story, compare related coverage, and continue from the same source.