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: Social Media (Page 2 of 49)
On 7 January 2025 Meta made sweeping changes to its policy on Community Standards – Hateful Conduct the (“Standards”). This article examines how these changes put marginalised groups at serious risk and how they, in the context of the Online Safety Act 2023 (“the Act”) are in breach of their duties to prevent and protect these users from harm. Continue reading
In the modern era of instantaneous digital communication, the unchecked proliferation of misinformation presents significant challenges, with its impact varying widely across jurisdictions due to diverse socio-political, cultural, and linguistic landscapes. While global platforms have initiated measures to address this pervasive issue, their reliance on universal frameworks often proves inadequate, particularly within complex and pluralistic societies such as India. This accentuates the critical need for a departure from a uniform approach in favour of tailored strategies that address localized realities. Continue reading
The Australian federal government today introduced into parliament legislation for its social media ban for people under 16 years. Continue reading
For almost a decade, researchers have been gathering evidence that the social media platform Facebook disproportionately amplifies low-quality content and misinformation. So it was something of a surprise when in 2023 the journal Science published a study that found Facebook’s algorithms were not major drivers of misinformation during the 2020 United States election. Continue reading
When Pavel Durov arrived in France on his private jet last Saturday, he was greeted by police who promptly arrested him. As the founder of the direct messaging platform Telegram, he was accused of facilitating the widespread crimes committed on it. Continue reading
The U.S. Supreme Court has sent back to lower courts the decision about whether states can block social media companies such as Facebook and X, formerly Twitter, from regulating and controlling what users can post on their platforms. Continue reading
A campaign to block children’s access to social media to limit online harms and unhealthy internet use is picking up momentum in Australian politics. The current age limit for platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and TikTok is 13, but some state governments are calling to raise this age to 16. Continue reading
Scotland’s new hate crime law came into force on April 1, sparking immediate controversy over its potential effects on freedom of speech and expression, especially online. The Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act expands on current laws about crimes that have the possibility to stir up hatred, in Scotland only. Continue reading
In November 2023, Ofcom, as new online safety regulator, published the first of four major consultations under the Online Safety Act (“OSA”), which sets out its proposals for how “user-to-user” (“U2U”) services (essentially any online website or app that allows users to interact with each other) and online search services (i.e. Google, Bing and similar) should approach their illegal content duties under the new legislation. Continue reading
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