Background. The European Commission has been busy at work since the entry of the Digital Services Act (DSA) into force in November 2022. The DSA aims to create “a safe, predictable and trusted online environment.” To do so, it imposes a number of due process, transparency, and due diligence obligations on online companies, referred to by the law […]
AI-powered lies and manipulation constitute the gravest threat to humanity. At least this is the dystopian scenario espoused by the collective wisdom of 1,500 experts surveyed in the World Economic Forum’s 2024 Global Risks Report last week. Unfortunately, such outbreaks of “elite panic” are a recurring phenomenon. Whenever the public sphere is expanded through new communications technology, […]
Jeff Kosseff in New York Times This term, the Supreme Court will reconsider America’s laissez-faire approach to regulating the internet, and in doing so it will address vital and new First Amendment questions. Can states stop social media sites from blocking certain content? Can the federal government pressure platforms to remove content it disagrees with? […]
“Those who support silencing “dangerous” opinions coercively have failed to answer the question: Are we really safer when we know less about what motivates our neighbors?” – CEO Jacob Mchangama in Persuasion Access article
Joan Barata Senior Legal Fellow, Future of Free Speech (Justitia) Introduction The Digital Services Act (DSA) constitutes the new legal horizontal framework in the EU regarding the provision of online services. It formally came into force on 16 November 2022. However, a significant number of rules and obligations included in this Regulation will become enforceable […]
WHEN THE US Supreme Court agreed to hear Gonzalez v. Google, its first case involving Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, the tech-policy world was laser-focused on its implications. The week before oral arguments, in February last year, the Brookings Institution held a panel touting the case’s “power to reshape the internet.” The New York Times wrote that the case “could have […]
“These concerns imply that social media is a lawless mayhem when it comes to hate speech. But this characterization is wrong. Most platforms have strict rules prohibiting hate speech, which have expanded significantly over the past several years. Many of these policies go far beyond both what’s required and permissible under international human rights law […]
“The Digital Services Act can out of good intentions have bad consequences around the world” – Jacob Mchangama in The Debate on FRANCE 24 Watch the full debate here.
By Jeff Kosseff Since the dawn of the commercial internet, Americans have spoken and accessed information online without providing their names. Political dissidents freely express their views. Patients search for health information without fearing public embarrassment. Domestic violence victims seek help online, shielding their communications from their abusers. State and federal lawmakers threaten to upend that culture of anonymity. And […]
BY JACOB MCHANGAMA AND JEFF KOSSEFF According to a new landmark decision by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), freedom of expression does not immunize public officials from criminal liability if they fail to promptly remove manifestly illegal content (such as “hate speech”) posted on their accounts by followers. The recent decision reveals the censorial route that Europe’s judiciary […]