People flag stuff. I don't think it results in removal automatically though it probably downgrades it as a story.

Some may regard this as off topic, but censorship seems to be a recurring subject and regularly discussed.

...so what? "Most stories about politics" are considered Off-Topic, as per the guidelines[0], and some members favor the flag- over the hide-button more than I'd like. It's still on place 19 on the active list[1], and a far cry from any practiced censorship like on Reddit, where stuff just gets [deleted] out of existence.

[0]: https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

[1]: https://news.ycombinator.com/active