censorship

noun

cen·sor·ship | \ˈsen(t)-sər-ˌship

Definition of censorship

1a : the institution, system, or practice of censoring They oppose government censorship.

b : the actions or practices of censors especially : censorial control exercised repressively censorship that has … permitted a very limited dispersion of facts — Philip Wylie

2 : the office, power, or term of a Roman censor

3 : exclusion from consciousness by the psychic censor

Examples of censorship in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Accusations of conservative censorship have also popped up recently with pro-Trump social media influencers Diamond and Silk, who claimed they've been banned and censored on Facebook. — Hunter Schwarz, CNN, "Donald Trump Jr. has a history of incorrectly suggesting Twitter is censoring or blocking tweets," 9 May 2018 There is only so much formal censorship that can go on in a country with robust First Amendment protections. — Jonathan Chait, Daily Intelligencer, "The Right Is Worse Than the Left on Free Speech. So What?," 20 Mar. 2018 At the time, there was a broad fear of alienating audiences and losing money – as well as self-censorship. — Rebekah F. Ward, The Christian Science Monitor, "How laughter brought more voters to the polls in Colombia," 3 July 2018 In 1934, Hollywood began enforcing its Production Code subjecting motion pictures to censorship review. — BostonGlobe.com, "This day in history," 30 June 2018 But an array of nonprofit groups and academics -- some of which receive funding from Google and other technology companies -- have characterized it as censorship. — Robert Levine, Billboard, "What a Google Email to News Publications Means for the Music Business," 28 June 2018 The mere use of Rekognition, or similar public surveillance and facial recognition systems, will exacerbate that distrust, and will promote suspicion and public self-censorship in the Orlando metro area. — Ryan Gillespie, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Advocacy groups ask Orlando to drop Amazon Rekognition surveillance software," 21 June 2018 Opponents argue that the removal of such content can be regarded as censorship, and limits the public’s access to free information. — Rossalyn Warren, The Atlantic, "Should the Internet Forget Italy's Most Viral Sex Tape?," 16 May 2018 The defense center has won several cases against state correctional facilities and county jails across the country on censorship issues, Friedmann said. — Lavendrick Smith, charlotteobserver, "Mecklenburg prisoners can't read this magazine. A federal lawsuit aims to change that. | Charlotte Observer," 26 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'censorship.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.