The recent decision by the Australian government to introduce a ban on social media for under-16s has been received with both praise and condemnation. Continue reading
The International Forum for Responsible Media Blog
Category: Government and Policy (Page 1 of 38)
The UK High Court recently dismissed the case against environmental activist Trudi Warner, who was referred for contempt of court in March 2023. Civil liberties campaigners hailed the decision as a “huge win for democracy”, but is it? Continue reading
It took just two years for the idea of an anti-SLAPP statute to go from a grassroots movement in the UK to its realisation in legislation. There are obvious problems with the resulting anti-SLAPP provisions in the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (“ECCTA”), and the more general “SLAPPs Bill”, currently at the Committee Stage. Both are overinclusive in their definition of “SLAPPs”, and the burden they place on claimants is likely to lead to problems with access to justice. But what should be done about SLAPPs? Continue reading
The UK’s media regulator has found GB News guilty of breaching the UK’s “due impartiality” code in five separate programmes. This brings the total violations for the news channel to 12 in the last 18 months, with eight investigations underway. Continue reading
In his new year speech, Keir Starmer held out his familiar vague promises of change after this year’s election and warned us that the Conservatives would go down fighting dirty, but he once again failed even to mention the media or the press. Continue reading
The First Amendment does not protect messages posted on social media platforms. The companies that own the platforms can – and do – remove, promote or limit the distribution of any posts according to corporate policies. But all that might soon change. Continue reading
Post Brexit, the UK is attempting to redefine its place in the world of an increasingly globalised digital policy. My recent book on Brexit and the Digital Single Market examines the consequences of Brexit for the digital sector. It finds that Brexit has resulted in a loss of regulatory capacity within the UK and a new governance architecture for the EU in the digital sector. Continue reading
The UK’s long-debated online safety bill (OSB) has been approved by the House of Lords, clearing the way for it to become law. But it has pitted the government, which proposed the bill, against tech companies that provide secure messaging services. Critics say it will allow authorities in the UK to compel service providers to break users’ encryption. Continue reading
Part 3: Criticism
In a rare show of national unity, disapproval of the OSB has spanned both ends of the political spectrum. Alongside criticism from the Labour culture minister, Conservative politicians have also weighed in on the ‘legal but harmful’ debate. Thinktanks and non-profit groups have likewise been apprehensive.
The Data Protection and Digital Information Bill, currently before the UK Parliament, proposes a slew of changes to UK data protection law, including law enforcement and intelligence services data processing regulated by Parts 3 and 4 of the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018) respectively. Continue reading
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