We are seeing a major crackdown on free speech. It got into gear with the race/immigration issue, not debate, there is no debate, but Covid has moved everything up many levels. Professor Mark Crispin Miller, at New York University, is but one more dramatic example, where he ended up suing 19 of his department colleagues for libel! Ironically, Professor Miller is an expert on the social theory of propaganda, and sees plenty in the Covid narrative.
https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/academic-freedom-propaganda-mark-crispin-miller/