This lecture series explores the shifting boundaries of censorship—from its historical roots in religion and state power to today’s algorithmic systems that shape what we see, say, and believe. Beginning with a concise historical introduction, the series traces how censorship has evolved alongside media, political authority, and cultural norms. While totalitarian states relied heavily on censorship and propaganda in 20^th century (e.g. the Soviet Union, Germany), liberal democracies used political and cultural censorship to fight unwanted political positions (the McCarthy and Trump eras in the United States or Switzerland in WWII). Parallelly, cultural censorship targeted written and pictured nudity and sexuality as obscenity.

The focus then turns to contemporary debates: accusations of “censorship” voiced particularly from right-wing political movements, clashes over freedom of speech, and efforts to curb hate speech and disinformation on digital platforms. Are content moderation policies a necessary defense of democratic values—or a new form of ideological control? Accusations of censorship are also often linked to conspiracy theories, as in the case of COVID-19 or alternative historical narratives (e.g., ancient alien myths).

We will examine how algorithms, platforms, and data-driven governance increasingly regulate visibility, attention, and behavior. The lecture series also addresses the rise of the surveillance economy, where user data becomes both commodity and instrument of power, raising urgent questions about autonomy, transparency, and control.

Bringing together perspectives from politics, religious studies, media theory, and cultural analysis, the series invites critical reflection on who controls information today—and at what cost. In an age where censorship no longer always looks like prohibition, but like optimization, what does freedom really mean.

Different speakers are invited to contribute to the lecture series: from Amnesty International, Aktion “Verbrannte Orte” (digital memorial group on German book burnings), the Study of Religion, Digital Society.

First session is on 26.2.26.!

Contextualization of current debates on censorship (also linked to conspiration theories) in view of its historical development.

To be published in the single lectures.