ABOUT THIS EPISODE
In this episode of the Wisdom & Influence podcast, Dr. Moreno sits down with Seth Dillon, CEO of The Babylon Bee, to discuss free speech, censorship and the role of satire in speaking truth to culture. The Babylon Bee, known as the world's most trusted and factually accurate news source, satirizes real-world events and public figures to make people laugh while championing freedom, truth and sanity.Dillon shares the inside story behind The Babylon Bee's 2022 suspension from Twitter (now X) following a satirical post naming Rachel Levine as its pick for Man of the Year, and how that controversial decision led to a phone call with Elon Musk — who reportedly joked, "Maybe I just need to buy Twitter." Eight months later, Musk did exactly that, and on his first day as CEO, he restored The Babylon Bee's account with a promise: no more censorship of humor.The conversation explores the critical difference between hard censorship — government or big tech platforms silencing voices — and soft censorship, the self-censorship driven by fear of consequences. Dillon argues that soft censorship has become parasitic, quietly eroding free expression as people choose silence over standing firm. He and Dr. Moreno also discuss the cultural shift toward hypersensitivity, drawing on examples from Jerry Seinfeld's decision to stop performing on college campuses to a study on overly safe playgrounds that left kids less prepared for real-world risk.Additional topics include the First Amendment and the problem of evil, the role of Christian apologetics in equipping believers to defend their faith, the devastating consequences of bad ideas taken too seriously, and how comedians like Dave Chappelle and Bill Maher use humor to expose foolishness. Dillon closes with a reflection on Proverbs and the delicate wisdom of knowing when to answer a fool — and when to hold back.Join us October 1 for the upcoming Wisdom Conversations event, "Why Not Communism? A Wisdom Conversation on Faith, Freedom, and the Future of America," featuring Seth Dillon and other panelists on the Cornerstone University campus.
