Prime minister defends social media bill amid concerns from Christian groups it could portray religious teachings as misinformation
“So this is quite strange that the Coalition, which initiated this process, are now once again [against it] … Our country cannot advance based upon fear.”
A submission from the University of Technology Sydney’s Centre for Media Transition argued that “some of the commentary around the impact of the draft bill on freedom of speech is overblown” but accepted there was legitimate concern about the enlarged role for Acma.
The centre proposed concerns could be addressed by “limiting Acma’s information gathering powers to ‘measures implemented to prevent or respond’ to mis- and disinformation … thereby removing any possibility that Acma could indirectly influence decisions on which forms of content comprise mis- and disinformation”.
In its submission, the Law Council said that mis- and disinformation “can result in significant harms to the enjoyment of human rights in particular contexts” but it required a “cautious regulatory response”.Angela Flannery, the deputy chair of the Law Council’s media and communications law committee, said many critics of the bill fail to make the “distinction between freedom of speech and the right to have voices amplified by platforms”.
“What the government is trying to do is get more transparency about what platforms are doing to combat mis- and disinformation – not trying to give Acma powers to define what is and isn’t [in those categories].”
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