In her article in the open access journal Internet Policy Review, Amélie Heldt looks at the regulation of content in social media, which is not so easy to grasp. "Borderline content" is neither legal nor illegal and shows how problematic content regulation can be with regard to our fundamental rights.
Read the article here
Abstract
In late September 2020, the Facebook algorithm removed a
picture of onions because of the 'overtly sexual manner' they were positioned. While this anecdote will probably make you smile because of its absurdity (Facebook later confirmed the algorithm was supposed to block ‘nudity’), the underlying systematic sanctioning of content that
might potentially breach community standards won’t. Social media platforms will remove or algorithmically downgrade content, or suspend or shadow-ban accounts because of borderline speech. How open can communication be if it is
almost exceeding normative limits? And who gets to define these limits? This text aims at giving a few insights on borderline speech and why the concept behind it is highly problematic.
Heldt, A. (2020): Borderline Speech: Caught in a Free Speech Limbo?. In: Internet Policy Review, Op-Ed, published on 15 October 2020. online: https://policyreview.info/articles/news/borderline-speech-caught-free-speech-limbo/1510
