Favorite The net’s long decline into “five giant websites, each filled with screenshots of the other four” isn’t a mystery. Nor was it by any means a forgone conclusion. Instead, we got here through a series of conscious actions by big businesses and lawmakers that put antitrust law into a 40-year coma. Well, now antitrust…
All posts tagged Corporate Speech Controls
EFF and ECNL's Comment to the Meta Oversight Board on the Term 'Shaheed'
Favorite EFF Intern Reema Moussa authored this post. EFF recently submitted comments in partnership with the European Center for Not-for-Profit Law (ECNL) in response to the Oversight Board’s request for input on the moderation of the Arabic word “shaheed.” The Oversight Board was created by Meta in 2020 as an appellate body and has 27…
How YouTube’s Partnership with London’s Police Force is Censoring UK Drill Music
Favorite Originating from the streets of Chicago, drill music is a creative output of inner-city Black youths. It is defined by real life experiences and perspectives, and whilst drill rappers often document gang-related conflict and anti-establishment narratives in their lyrics and music videos, the rap genre is a crucial mouthpiece of artistic and cultural expression.…
Self-Proclaimed Free Speech Platforms Are Censoring Nude Content. Here’s Why You Should Care
Favorite If their marketing is to be believed, self-avowed free speech maximalist sites like Parler—“where free speech thrives”—and Frank Speech—“the voice of free speech”—claim they will publish all user content. But the reality is a prohibition of many types of legal content, including legal sexual material. This restriction is all too familiar to queer communities,…
What Companies Can Do Now to Protect Digital Rights In A Post-Roe World
Favorite The increasing risk that the Supreme Court will overturn federal constitutional abortion protections has refocused attention on the role digital service providers of all kinds play in facilitating access to health information, education, and care—and the data they collect in return. In a post-Roe world, service providers can expect a raft of subpoenas and…
EFF Statement on the Declaration for the Future of the Internet
Favorite The White House announced today that sixty one countries have signed the Declaration for the Future of the Internet. The high-level vision and principles expressed in the Declaration—to have a single, global network that is truly open, fosters competition, respects privacy and inclusion, and protects human rights and fundamental freedoms of all people—are laudable.…
Amidst Invasion of Ukraine, Platforms Continue to Erase Critical War Crimes Documentation
Favorite When atrocities happen—in Mariupol, Gaza, Kabul, or Christchurch—users and social media companies face a difficult question: how do we handle online content that shows those atrocities? Can and should we differentiate between pro-violence content containing atrocities and documentation by journalists or human rights activists? In a conflict, should platforms take sides as to whose…
What Spotify, Neil Young, and Joe Rogan Tell Us About Content Moderation
Favorite Content moderation is complex, difficult and, frankly, exhausting. The most recent example involves Spotify and its decision to stick with the controversial podcast host, Joe Rogan, over other creators. There is no question that Spotify has the right to determine whom to host, profit from or reject from its platform; what is worrisome, however,…
New Tracking Global Online Censorship Site Explains Content Moderation Practices and Impacts
Favorite Content moderation has become a critical topic across the globe. Unfortunately, it can still be difficult for the average person to understand the processes that go into content moderation, much less how to appeal decisions that those platforms make to censor content or accounts. To help fill this gap, we’re launching a resource for…
Fact-Checking, COVID-19 Misinformation, and the British Medical Journal
Favorite Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, authoritative research and publications have been critical in gaining better knowledge of the virus and how to combat it. However, unlike previous pandemics, this one has been further exacerbated by a massive wave of misinformation and disinformation spreading across traditional and online social media. The increasing volume of misinformation and…