Faculty Fellow Lecture Series: Sultan Tepe, Political Science, “Regulating Morality: State and Censorship Under Authoritarian Regimes”

As the global tide of authoritarianism sweeps many countries around the world, the freedom of expression and minority identities are at risk more than ever. Autocrats use various strategies to censor the media and marginalize their minorities. Yet, censorship can be costly, causing a dilemma—If autocrats suppress media and minority voices completely, they risk losing the ability to gauge the size of the opposition and using the minority groups that legitimize their power. Conversely, if they grant too much freedom to the media and minority identities, there is a danger that opposition forces might unseat their authority. An exploration of how censorship institutions operate daily reveals that autocrats frequently turn these dilemmas to their advantage. Censorship in authoritarian regimes is not merely a top-down process through unified organization. Autocrats also neutralize dissident voices within their ranks through various methods, including spatial segregation and internal promotion mechanisms. More importantly, censorship often thrives not despite public support but because of it. Understanding how dissidents operate under authoritarian regimes shows that creative defiance, such as holding public meetings for minority groups such as LGBTQ+ individuals in unexpected locations, can become vital forms of resistance.

Sultan Tepe is a professor of Political Science. Her research spans a range of topics, including populism, authoritarianism, state-imposed urban renewal projects, and gentrification. She serves as the editor-in-chief of Politics and Religion (Cambridge University Press) and is the author of the award-winning book Beyond Sacred and Secular. Her forthcoming book, Zoning Faiths explores how zoning regulations, building codes, and right-wing backlash affect minority communities and their theologies in the US cities.

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