After several media outlets complained about arbitrary choices eliminating their material, EU lawmakers on Tuesday approved new regulations aimed at Alphabet’s Google (GOOGL.O), Meta Platforms (META.O), and other sizable online platforms’ content moderation limits.
According to the proposed regulations, online platforms must publish news items for 24 hours before removing them if they violate their content moderation policies.
Online platforms are concerned about the article, known as Article 17 of the Media Freedom Act, that the European Commission proposed last year to guarantee media pluralism and protect editorial independence.
According to MPs, the media should “be informed of the platform’s intention to delete or restrict their content along with a 24-hour window for the media to respond.” If the platform rules and conditions violation persists after the 24-hour period, the platform may remove, limit, or send the issue to national authorities.
Google, Meta, and X are among the companies that make up the tech lobbying organization CCIA Europe, which warned that certain people would use Article 17 as misinformation.
CCIA Europe’s senior policy manager, Mathilde Adjutor, said, “The media exemption will empower rogue actors, creating new loopholes to spread fake news rather than fixing anything.” In addition to requiring media to be upfront about their ownership, lawmakers passed a bill that forbids employing spyware against journalists unless it can be justified as a last resort option.
Before the new regulations can be approved, the parliamentarians must negotiate their specifics with EU nations in the upcoming months.
After significant elections for the European Parliament next year and Poland this month, concerns about political involvement in media outlets are growing.
Comment Template