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'No longer acceptable' for platforms to take key decisions alone, EU Commission says
It is "no longer acceptable" for social media giants to take key decisions on online content removals alone, following the high profile takedowns of US President Trump's accounts on Facebook and Twitter, the European Commission has said.
Trump's accounts have been suspended by the two platforms for inciting calls to violence ahead of the violent riots that hit Washington's Capitol Hill last week.
Speaking to lawmakers on Monday (11 January), Prabhat Agarwal, an official who heads up the eCommerce unit at the European Commission's DG Connect, noted how the EU executive's Digital Services Act attempts to realign the balance between effective content removal and preserving freedom of expression online.
"It is no longer acceptable in our view that platforms take some key decisions by themselves alone without any supervision, without any accountability, and without any sort of dialogue or transparency for the kind of decisions that they're taking," Agarwal said.
"Freedom of expression is really a key value in this," he told the European Parliament's internal market committee.
The comments came following concerns raised by some lawmakers in the European Parliament following the suspension of Trump's social media accounts. In doing so, platforms giants had demonstrated that they yield a disproportionate degree of power over the freedom of speech online.
"The fact that platforms like Twitter and Facebook decide who can speak freely is dangerous," Green MEP Kim van Sparrentak said.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 15 2021, @03:17PM (27 children)
And once the people are educated, they will vote Democrat forevermore. Snort!
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Barenflimski on Friday January 15 2021, @03:35PM (9 children)
Unfortunately, what you say is actually something I have heard repeated to me, yet they actually meant it. I've heard many times that its college that is the problem. "College creates snowflakes."
https://nypost.com/2018/11/30/how-to-make-snowflakes-and-expand-campus-bureaucracy/ [nypost.com]
https://www.newsweek.com/millennials-are-snowflakes-heres-data-prove-it-670662 [newsweek.com]
I've heard many people say that college brainwashes people to think differently. I've started to wonder if this is the root of people not liking college, because they equate learning with being brainwashed?
There is no doubt that you can have educated people disagree and join different political parties, but as DannyB points out, "Another problem is the levels of rage. Before FaceTwit, people could disagree. But now people have to disagree to an extent they work themselves up into a murderous rage. It's unbelievable."
I agree. Its all unbelievable. I'd love to rewind the interwebs to the time before FaceTwit. It would be nice if people would at least educate themselves enough to realize that talking things out is a whole lot better than burning it all down and starting over.
(Score: 3, Troll) by DeathMonkey on Friday January 15 2021, @05:27PM (7 children)
Liberals: Climate change is real, we should do something
Conservatives 20 years ago: Climate change is real, but there are more important things to worry about. Or, but the cure is worse than the problem. Or, any number of disagreements reasonable people could have.
Conservatives now: Climate change is a fake Chinese hoax.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by barbara hudson on Friday January 15 2021, @05:44PM (1 child)
SoylentNews is social media. Says so right in the slogan. Soylentnews is people, not tech.
(Score: 2) by Captival on Sunday January 17 2021, @06:43AM
How amazing that everybody is a gullible retard except of course for all the enlightened free thinkers that vote exactly like you do.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 15 2021, @06:15PM (4 children)
Liberals: Climate change is real, we should do something
Yeah, then they vote for democrats who want to tell us how often we can flush our toilets.
Instead of restrictions, the damn liberals should supply alternatives that are actually better!
And if they're really liberal, they'll stop voting for machine politicians from the 70s and 80s that frustrate everybody else into voting for republicans.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 15 2021, @07:07PM
Tried doing all those things.
"Instead of restrictions, the damn liberals should supply alternatives that are actually better!"
Conservatives: muh lightbulbs, muh gas guzzlers, muh freedumbs from carbon taxes, damn environmental regulations increasing business costs!
"And if they're really liberal, they'll stop voting for machine politicians from the 70s and 80s that frustrate everybody else into voting for republicans."
So it is everyone's falt but your own?
Jesus christ you whiny dumb fuck, the things that frustrate you are the improvements you just said should be made! Sorry you're a moron?? The single best thing we can do is make college mandatory and free, with a requirement of environmental and social justice courses so you can actually comprehend the problems instead of whining about the solutions.
(Score: 2) by helel on Saturday January 16 2021, @12:49AM (2 children)
Democratic politicians can't just magic the problem away. They can only implement policy designed to address it. To use your analogy, if flushing toilets causes climate change then implementing policy limiting how often you can flush is a solution. It's the thing that will reduce the problem.
There is a way to get better alternatives tho - fund basic research. I'll give you one guess which party supports that one...
Republican Patriotism [youtube.com]
(Score: 2) by Reziac on Saturday January 16 2021, @02:16AM (1 child)
"To use your analogy, if flushing toilets causes climate change then implementing policy limiting how often you can flush is a solution. It's the thing that will reduce the problem."
So now my toilet is plugged up all the time. What's the solution to that? Outhouses??
See, this is the problem with that sort of solution.
And there is no Alkibiades to come back and save us from ourselves.
(Score: 2) by helel on Saturday January 16 2021, @02:47AM
No, I don't really see. The toilet thing was just the AC's analogy. In the real world we're talking about things like minimum fuel efficiency standards so the real world equivalent of your clogged toilet is that you don't buy enough gasoline [caranddriver.com]. It's a problem, sure, but one that can be addressed.
Also, if clogging your toilet really is a problem you frequently suffer I recommend you get a poop knife [urbandictionary.com].
Republican Patriotism [youtube.com]
(Score: 1) by crotherm on Saturday January 16 2021, @03:24AM
Usenet got pretty wild back in its day. Spewing all these lies about green cards and such.
(Score: -1, Redundant) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 15 2021, @03:39PM
QED
(Score: 5, Insightful) by DannyB on Friday January 15 2021, @03:57PM
It is interesting how many educated long time Republicans are separating themselves from either their party, or at least from Trumpism.
It is interesting how many Republican judges, well educated people, including some Trump appointed judges, don't just drink the Trump koolaid when told to do so.
Educated people come to realize that the US is only 4 % of the world population. The other 96 % of people actually do exist!
Educated people discover the uncomfortable truth that not all people have white skin. (shudder Horrors!) And many of those oddball non white people are actually nice people if you can bring yourself to actually talk to them. Heck, you might even have to have one of them as a lab partner, or later a co worker, and actually get to know them.
Educated people discover that not all people (even white people) believe the same thing. Yes, sadly, people have different beliefs. One logical deduction from this is that: OMG that means there are people who believe differently than ME ME ME!!!
Educated people start to think about public policy in a longer term view and not so much about their most immediate needs in the next five minutes. Maybe it would be a good idea to have traffic signals? Roads? Bridges? Safe drinking water! Working sewer systems. Maybe a professional police force might be useful to keep crime down. Maybe military defense could be a good idea to preserve our way of life. All these simple things we take for granted. Things that people have bled and died for so we can enjoy our comfortable lives, even if we wish we had more / better. Nah! Let's just burn it all down! It won't affect my comfortable life! But will satisfy my short term rage! YEAH! BURN IT ALL!!! Educated people would embrace that idea.
Why is it that when I hold a stick, everyone begins to look like a pinata?
(Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 15 2021, @04:57PM (10 children)
Right, one people are "educated."
30 years ago when I was in preschool, the Commies had me march in their parade, golding happy rainbow flags. I thought I escaped that. 30 years later Commies want my kids to march in their parade, complete with rainbow flags.
(Score: 4, Informative) by maxwell demon on Friday January 15 2021, @05:05PM (9 children)
The communist flag was red, not rainbow.
The Tao of math: The numbers you can count are not the real numbers.
(Score: 5, Funny) by DannyB on Friday January 15 2021, @05:16PM (3 children)
The communists are huge supporters of the gays.
See: Russia, how they treat gays
Why is it that when I hold a stick, everyone begins to look like a pinata?
(Score: 2) by FatPhil on Friday January 15 2021, @05:29PM (2 children)
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves
(Score: 3, Funny) by DannyB on Friday January 15 2021, @05:42PM
Apparently there is not a single gay person in North Korea. No, not even one.
Why is it that when I hold a stick, everyone begins to look like a pinata?
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday January 16 2021, @03:27PM
It's it so interesting how well propaganda works?
I don't mean Russia. I mean us. In Russia there is an average gay population, and it's no secret to anybody including politicians. There are even *gasp* gay clubs. The one and only difference between Russia and America is that in Russia it is illegal to disseminate propaganda of a sexual nature to anybody under the age of 18. So this effectively precludes any sort of gay pride march, tranny reading day at the library, or men walking around in S&M gear with other mean on leashes because these are all apparently things to do.
To be clear though I am speaking of Russia 'proper' here. Chechnya is a part of Russia (in a way analogous to how Puerto Rico is a part of the US) and they have their own set of rules, laws, and culture. And homosexuality in Chechnya is as well tolerated as it is in any Muslim majority nation. Which is to say, it's not.
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 15 2021, @08:02PM (4 children)
Belive me, the colors of the flag were not red during the May Day "celebration." This was not a military parade, and they want the kids to have happy thoughts as they indoctrinate them.
I love how these armchair historians want to tell me, a person who was actually there.
I bet you also think you are smarter than average.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday January 16 2021, @12:20AM
We all know that you are somewhat stupider than normal. What were you doing "golding" flags, anyway? That sounds more Trumpist than communist.
(Score: 2) by helel on Saturday January 16 2021, @12:56AM (2 children)
Perhaps if you gave more information you'd get a more desirable response? Perhaps start by stating where and when you're referring to, describe the events or practices, and then discuss the indoctrination. That way people can lear from your experience instead of just being confused as to why you hate rainbows.
Republican Patriotism [youtube.com]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday January 16 2021, @08:42AM
You'll just be sitting there, minding your own business, and then they come marching in, crawl up your leg and start to bite your ass, and you'll be like, AY, GET OUTTA MY ASS, YOU STUPID RAINBOWS!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday January 17 2021, @05:21AM
I gave up trying to warn people about this ten years ago, now I just accept their ignorance, and await for the day their offspring are steralized with puberty blockers. I will be goign back to my Communist hellhole, which is under new management, and surprisingly people who live thee are not keen to fall into the trap again, no matter how many epiteths ending in phobia are thrown at them by the international media.
(Score: 2) by Tork on Friday January 15 2021, @05:22PM (3 children)
How long will a party last when it has to constantly invent enemies to entice you to vote for them?
🏳️🌈 Proud Ally 🏳️🌈
(Score: 2, Funny) by fustakrakich on Friday January 15 2021, @06:18PM (2 children)
Indefinitely... the magic works
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 15 2021, @07:07PM (1 child)
(Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Friday January 15 2021, @09:15PM
No thank you! They're the magician's assistant
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..