The hullabaloo among the liberal cohort over Carlson’s interview with Putin unveils that those who label communists as tankies and authoritarians are well-aware of the necessity to suppress divergent viewpoints.
It emerges that freedom of expression is limited to ideas that align with the liberal narrative; when faced with opinions they deem detrimental, liberals demand cancellation, imprisonment, or even death for the proponents.
The real disagreement liberals have with communists is over what set of ideas has merit. When liberals screech about authoritarianism what they’re really saying is that it’s their ideology that’s being suppressed.
I think it’s a “big deal” due to this interview being available for western English speaking audiences without a paywall or any kind of barrier. It’s by a “famous guy” and is made accessible. When interviews with Putin are covered by western news sources its only in bits and pieces, sure you can probably find the full talk online but most people aren’t going to look for it or when they do they might not stick around due to the language barrier (even with translators). You probably already know this so I apologize for repeating information. I do agree with you though, I feel conflicted about this whole thing. I’m glad it happened in terms of getting more people to watch, but the fact that it was Tucker Carlson really sucks… He came to Canada recently to spread his bullshit so I can’t say I’m super thrilled with his involvement. I really do wish it was someone else…
Edit: Yeah, the YouTube comments of the interview have an uncomfortable air (some are just explicitly bad), Carlson’s audience will follow him wherever he goes so seeing hero worship is inevitable…