> they routinely gobble up the narrative that the US is less free than Russia and other autocracies I have seen little or no evidence to support this contentio

> they routinely gobble up the narrative that the US is less free than Russia and other autocracies I have seen little or no evidence to support this contention, and plenty that does not support it. There are certainly periodic discussions suggesting the US is less free than it's own PR would suggest, but that's not at all the same thing.