Who is the Guardian of Free Speech? Meta’s Oversight Board and (Other) Courts and Dispute Resolution Mechanisms
The spread of misinformation and hate speech has led to calls for a more active role of social networks when it comes to curating content. Others fear censorship and arbitrariness. In this stormy debate, Meta decided to share the responsibility for the enforcement of its community guidelines on Facebook and Instagram by setting up the Oversight Board (OB), an independent body which can review decisions taken by Meta on the removal of posts and blocking of users.
Also, state courts in Europe intervene more and more in the content moderation process, inter alia with the German Bundesgerichtshof annulling Facebook’s Terms and Conditions in parts and the German Bundesverfassungsgericht as well as the Italian Corte Costituzionale ordering Meta to unblock users. US-American courts, on the other hand, regularly rejected claims against social media companies aiming at the reinstatement of content or user accounts.
Oversight Board’s Co-Chair and former Inter-American Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression Catalina Botero-Marino (Global Freedom of Expression, Columbia University), Martin Eifert (Humboldt University Berlin), Matthias Kettemann (University of Insbruck, Hans-Bredow- Institut) and Erik Tuchtfeld (MPIL) will discuss the relationship between state courts and emerging private dispute resolution mechanisms in the realm of content moderation, their effect on freedom of speech on the internet and new regulatory proposals in instruments such as “Europe’s Constitution for Internet Platforms”, the Digital Services Act.
The discussion will be moderated by Alexandra Kemmerer (MPIL) and be open for comments and questions by registered participants.
Date and Time: February 10th, 2022, 5:00 pm (CET)
Place: Virtual meeting (Heidelberger Salon)
Participants:
- Moderation: Alexandra Kemmerer (MPIL)
- Catalina Botero-Marino (Co-Chair Oversight Board; Global Freedom of Expression, Columbia University)
- Erik Tuchtfeld (MPIL)
- Matthias Kettemann (Uni Insbruck, HBI)
- Martin Eifert (HU Berlin)
Cite as
Alexandra Kemmerer, Catalina Botero-Marino, Erik Tuchtfeld, Matthias C. Kettemann & Martin Eifert,
Livestream – Heidelberger Salon digital: Discussion on 10 February 2022 at 17:00 CET by the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law in cooperation with Global Freedom of Expression, Columbia University,
Völkerrechtsblog,
10.02.2022.
