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All your base are belong to us. A leaked memo circulating among Senate Democrats contains a host of bonkers authoritarian proposals for regulating digital platforms, purportedly as a way to get tough on Russian bots and fake news. To save American trust in "our institutions, democracy, free press, and markets," it suggests, we need unprecedented and undemocratic government intervention into online press and markets, including "comprehensive (GDPR-like) data protection legislation" of the sort enacted in the E.U.
Titled "Potential Policy Proposals for Regulation of Social Media and Technology Firms," the draft policy paper—penned by Sen. Mark Warner and leaked by an unknown source to Axios—the paper starts out by noting that Russians have long spread disinformation, including when "the Soviets tried to spread 'fake news' denigrating Martin Luther King" (here he fails to mention that the Americans in charge at the time did the same). But NOW IT'S DIFFERENT, because technology.
"Today's tools seem almost built for Russian disinformation techniques," Warner opines. And the ones to come, he assures us, will be even worse.
Here's how Warner is suggesting we deal:
Mandatory location verification. The paper suggests forcing social media platforms to authenticate and disclose the geographic origin of all user accounts or posts.
Mandatory identity verification: The paper suggests forcing social media and tech platforms to authenticate user identities and only allow "authentic" accounts ("inauthentic accounts not only pose threats to our democratic process...but undermine the integrity of digital markets"), with "failure to appropriately address inauthentic account activity" punishable as "a violation of both SEC disclosure rules and/or Section 5 of the [Federal Trade Commission] Act."
Bot labeling: Warner's paper suggests forcing companies to somehow label bots or be penalized (no word from Warner on how this is remotely feasible)
Define popular tech as "essential facilities." These would be subject to all sorts of heightened rules and controls, says the paper, offering Google Maps as an example of the kinds of apps or platforms that might count. "The law would not mandate that a dominant provider offer the serve for free," writes Warner. "Rather, it would be required to offer it on reasonable and non-discriminatory terms" provided by the government.
claiming this stuff doesn’t exis
I really thought you would be one of the few posters on this site to see the danger posed by the level of censorship being proposed.
I actually do believe you will eventually get it.
What stuff ? Stories about mass shootings being government set ups to justify taking away our guns ? OR Pizza gate stories about elite democrats in pedophile ring run out of a pizza parlor in D.C.. Or stories about the many murders Hillary Clinton has committed in her lust for power ?
Yeah, freedom has no meaning if Americans with below average intelligence can't be manipulated with that kind of noise.
I don't know how we ever even got along when the fairness doctrine was in place.
With that, you've in all logical and philosophical sense given up any argument against your 1st amendment rights ever being curbed. You do know that right?
Based on your belief in an absolute first amendment: how do you prevent foreign nations from running full scale propaganda operations in the US with the purpose to divide, disinform, polarize, destroy the credibility of institutions, etc....?
Do you believe McCarthy was wrong?
You people need to study propaganda. Seriously
with far more power by the leftie globalist scum corporations.
Mandatory location verification. The paper suggests forcing social media platforms to authenticate and disclose the geographic origin of all user accounts or posts.
Goran_K saysWith that, you've in all logical and philosophical sense given up any argument against your 1st amendment rights ever being curbed. You do know that right?
Based on your belief in an absolute first amendment: how do you prevent foreign nations from running full scale propaganda operations in the US with the purpose to divide, disinform, polarize, destroy the credibility of institutions, etc....?
Do you believe McCarthy was wrong?
The fact that we have an unpopular and polarized establishment with low credibility makes things very easy for Russians propagandists. Does it not?
It's like shooting fish in a barrel.
Take a look at how the left is treating conservatives who gasp go to a coffee shop in Portland.
You can't prevent individuals in other nations from sharing info, whether true or false.
Perhaps you have bought in the democrat and deep state propaganda about Russia
lostand confused saysPerhaps you have bought in the democrat and deep state propaganda about Russia
Nope. Democrats are trying to link Trump to this. I see no sign that Trump is involved.
In fact I'm quite certain Russians are helping the left in some cases. Civil discord is their goal.
lostand confused sayswith far more power by the leftie globalist scum corporations.
The fact that we have an unpopular and polarized establishment with low credibility makes things very easy for Russians propagandists. Does it not?
It's like shooting fish in a barrel.
It's also likely China is doing that too. I remember a while back, either during Bush or Obama admin I read some wikileak about how Chinese government was planning some sort of attack on us, which was going to be economic and social in nature. Basically propaganda to create dissent, and economic policies that kill jobs. That was a while back. I wonder if that is what I read, and if it's finally taking hold with the left.
Russia, Russia, Russia!!!
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/survival-of-our-democracy-depends-on-banning-sites-like-infowars-democratic-senator-says
There's multiple levels to this.
1. Legacy Media Business Plans
2. Legacy Media's failing Influence (why else would Bezos buy the WaPo, which has studiously ignored any reporting on Amazon Warehouses)
3. Establishment's embrace of Postmarxist Postmodernist 60s-70s Oppression Theory to further Open Borders and Cheap Labor.
4. Western Influence; yes, Western Civilization is spreading like wildfire, so the Left needs to destroy Western Civ (and it's White Core) to have a hoot in hell of bringing in Utopian, Worldwide "Social Justice." This includes the Westphalian concept of the Nation State.
5. Corporatists also want to do away with Nationalism so there is no check and balance on their preferred Multilateral Treaties and Trade Zones.
6. Many People are still stuck in the past, refusing to see the primary struggle is Nationalism vs. Globalism, including traditional Progressives, as the Ezra Klein-Bernie Sanders interview revealed.
7. The "Cathedral" or the "Clerisy" is the combination of Corporate Administration (esp. PR/HR), Academia, many NGOs, and the Press, working together to push the pro-Globalist narrative.
Only censorship can save the Cathedral's promulgation of a narrative, with only ineffectual George Will style conservatives complaining impotently.