The latest effort to shore up the Morrison government’s re-election pitch as tough on big tech has come in the form of promises to pass legislation beefing up the power of Australia’s media watchdog to deal with misinformation and disinformation, which they acknowledge won’t happen until after the election.
On Monday, Communications Minister Paul Fletcher announced that the government would accept all the recommendations of the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA)’s review into how digital platforms were responding to disinformation.
These recommendations include giving ACMA the ability to mandate and enforce an industry code or standards, as well as the ability to compel tech companies to provide Australia-specific data.
These changes come as part of a suite of laws and proposed bills created by the Morrison government that is touting its ability to crack down on social media companies and keep Australians safe online.
ACMA’s Adequacy of digital platforms’ disinformation and news quality measures report was completed in June 2021. Part of its remit was considering the effectiveness of tech industry group Digital Industry Group Inc (DIGI)’s voluntary industry code on misinformation and disinformation.
The report commended industry for their self-regulation efforts but, given that it was delivered to Fletcher just three months after the code was brought into effect, didn’t make any judgements about the effectiveness of the code. It did however recommend refinements to the code, such as tightening definitions and creating industry standard baselines for performance.
Broadly, ACMA called for five recommendations, including giving the power to enforce the DIGI misinformation code and give them formal information-gathering powers — recommendations that Fletcher agreed to in full.
While the announcement mentioned that these reforms will only be pursued in the second half of the year, placing them after the election, the changes mark a notable change from the tech industry self-regulatory approach only recently embarked on by this government.
DIGI also welcomed the report, but was less full-throated in their support for the recommendation of giving the watchdog the power to enforce codes by only supporting it in principle.
Tech policy think tank Reset Australia’s Dhakshayini Sooriyakumaran trumpeted the changes as more proof of the failure of self-regulation, but lashed the DIGI code for failing to regulate the systems, processes and algorithms of platforms.
“It is disappointing we are heading into an election without systemic regulatory protections in place,” she said.
Disinformation and misinformation laws is code for a new wave of censorship, information control and cultivated compliant media.
It really is that plain & simple.
How many more warnings are needed?
In the aftermath of the phone-hacking scandal, when it was revealed that part of Rupert Murdoch’s media empire had not only engaged in mafia-like behaviour (abusing “his power as a media baron to manipulate the political process and intimidate those within it” – Karen Kissane, July 16, 2011), but had been involved in illegally hacking the phones of a murdered teenager, bomb victims, dead servicemen, politicians and senior police officers, it was fairly obvious that big media couldn’t be trusted to hold itself to account.
Labor, of course, attempted to address the problem of an unaccountable media behemoth peddling disinformation, but were destroyed by the very same media behemoth whose political arm, the Coalition, were gifted power following the 2013 election.
Guaranteed, the dominant narrative this time around won’t seek to focus on an over-reaching nanny-state communist-like government crushing the free-speech and free-expression guaranteed to bring truth to the people.
Industry self-regulation, Oxymoron. Let me see, Media No, Fossil fuel No, Banking No, Fuel, and energy pricing No. Advertising Maybe. Gambling No, Government donations No, Honesty in Government advertising No Religious sects No. It is a cop-out term from by governments to indicate they are doing something
Part of what is required is an education program that works much the same way as advertising, repeat until it is common knowledge. The campaign should run on all media platforms and legislated that it is not at the mercy of restraint of trade laws.
As Martz has pointed out the strategies used to influence and manipulate are such well worn pathways, it will take years before the public can identify coersion using critical thinking to gain the required comprehension.
But it has to be done because it fundamentally undermines basic trust on so many levels.
The struggle between those who believe they are the exclusive porters at the gateways to power, influence and the bigger bucks continues. It is quite amusing seeing them posture like they do.
Users of these media platforms have a choice: continue to find ‘evidence’ that they are indeed Satan’s spawn with the opportunity to block the abusive with as much energy as was required at the gates of Minas Tirith (either side), or just close their account.
The newest gateway global player, NWO, Great Reset, Davos, Schwab and acolytes, are poised to enter into the arena armed with the backing of the corporation and conglomerate which, if successful, should be the most pathological era yet experienced. They promise “the Earth and everything that is in it”, but we will have to give up some minor stuff, like possessions. Which is incredibly thoughtful and generous of them so it remains to be seen if they pull it off.
So where is Democracy in all of this? The liberator of the people still struggling to define itself and provide value? If you read this: demvision.wordpress.com (3 pages), and can work out why you think it won’t work the answer will be revealed. Plato told us we were a political animal and that was not advice, it was a warning. Pity, the combined common sense of an entire society might have done some good.
Root cause: “He who is willing to sacrifice freedom for safety will end up with neither,” (many and various).
You missed ‘Illuminati‘ when retyping the cheat-sheet – the carbon must be so smudged from overuse.
I can always rely on you to fill the gaps. Your vacuum-filling expertise is legendary.