The United Kingdom has published proposals to directly regulate social-media platforms to stop hate speech and extremist posts. It would include large media like Facebook and Twitter but smaller one too. Canada may follow suit.
Fines, manager liability, shut-downs considered
The U.K. plans to have an independent regulator who could issue “substantial fines,” make senior managers liable or even close non-compliant website.
“It covers quite a huge range,” says Stephanie MacLellan a specialist in digital policy at CIGI, a public policy think tank. “It goes from things that can be considered to be fully illegal… like terrorist content or child exploitation. Then it goes to things that might not necessarily be illegal but they are calling harmful, so, disinformation or harassment or hate speech where there’s really more of a grey area…
“They’re asking for some standards that can be applied across the board.”
Canada’s Democratic Institutions Minister Karina Gould says social media must do more to protect democracy during the coming federal election. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)
Canada warns social media
In Canada, Democratic Institutions Minister Karina Gould has said told social media they need to do more protect sites ahead of the federal election to be held on October 21, 2019. She warned that unless they do they may face regulation. Today, Facebook said it would ban certain far-right commentators and extremist groups from its platform.
Gould said Canada is consulting with other countries about regulating social media.
Canada may coordinate with other countries
MacLellan says there has already been work done with allies on cybersecurity. “We’ve seen…in the last six months or so, when there have been cyber incidents, Canada will attribute them. They’ll say who’s to blame. At the same time, you’ll see the United States and Australia and the U.K. and a bunch of other countries do that.
“So, there seems to be a move to global coordination as far as that’s concerned. Whether that’s a model for social media regulation that’ll be interesting to see. But it would make sense in a lot of ways because these companies that even though most are based in the United States they can be quite global in their reach.”
Digital policy specialist Stephanie MacLellan explains the U.K. plan to regulate social media and how Canada may follow suit.
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