Pornhub's age verification concerns, 'standardise' AI red teaming and NetChoice news
Hello and welcome to Everything in Moderation's Week in Review, your in-depth guide to the policies, products, platforms and people shaping the future of online speech and the internet. It's written by me, Ben Whitelaw and supported by members like you.
You wait ages for a NetChoice Supreme Court judgement that might shape the future of online speech and then two... are still to arrive at the time of pressing send on today's newsletter (that's the phrase right?). But there's plenty of interesting news to sift through this week, including more platforms pushing back against US state legislatures.
Alice's rallying call in this week's T&S Insider has received dozens of comments from T&S professionals and is worth a read if you missed it. Which might've been the case if you're new to EiM - welcome to folks from Meta, the Technology Coalition, CNAM, eSafety Commission, Nisos, The Markup, Tremau and others too.
Here's all you need to know about content moderation and internet speech from the last week — BW
Today’s edition is in partnership with Thorn, a nonprofit that provides digital platforms with solutions and resources to thwart online sexual harms against children.
Thorn’s latest research brief explores what youth experience online and the dangers they face from bad actors who misuse platform features to target children. We asked 8,000 youth about their experiences: Grooming, sharing nudes, insufficient safety tools. Understand the threats, so you can reduce harm.
Policies
New and emerging internet policy and online speech regulation
The EU this week postponed its vote on a controversial draft Child Sexual Abuse Material law that would compel messengers apps to scan all users’ images in what is being dubbed "upload moderation". Civil society organisations and EU Parliament members had raised concerns that the proposed regulation — which was first put forward in 2022 — would underline end-to-end encryption and create user privacy concerns. And, while The Verge reports that it "remains a key priority for the Council”, it seems more consultation will now take place.
As I mentioned up top, there was no word yet on the imminent NetChoice Supreme Court judgements; however, Mike and I will provide an update in today’s episode of Ctrl-Alt-Speech, our weekly podcast round-up of online speech and content moderation news. In the meantime, familiarise yourself with the key talking points with the following new reads:
- Supreme Court gets ready to drop its bombshells (Axios)
- The Supreme Court Can Stop Social Media Censorship (Newsweek)
- Ask the expert: Free speech and social media cases could shape future of media regulation (MSU Today)